Learning To Move On
by live2rite
Summary: When Lilly's parents are killed in a car crash, she moves in with the Stewarts. Basic story is how Miley is there for Lilly and what happens between them. LILEY.
1. Chapter 1 What To Do

A.N. Ok so this is the next story I promised. This story is slightly angsty but hopefully not too much. This first chapter is kinda short but I hope it sets up the story :D

Chapter One – What to do when the worst happens

It was a bad dream. A very bad dream. It had to be.

Lilly was staring at the white wall of the hospital waiting room, ignoring the pain from the cut on her forehead and wondering how the hell the day had gone from pretty good, with her parents actually getting along, to this nightmare. Suddenly, there was a movement at the entrance of the door and her best friend came rushing in, she looked as white as the walls around and came running over to Lilly when she saw her.

"Lilly!" she exclaimed and pulled her into her arms, she felt numb and didn't know what to say to her, "I ... I ... I'm so sorry" Miley whispered into her hair. She could see Mr Stewart talking quietly to the doctor who had told her the news about half an hour ago and she knew that he was telling him what had happened. She couldn't stop her mind from replaying it.

_Her dad had been driving her mom and her back to their house after their bi-monthly meeting. Her mom wasn't being snippy at her dad and her dad wasn't being the king of passive aggressive land. She was happily thinking about the Hannah concert due the next day when a truck crashed head on with them. Her dad didn't even have time to brake as their car rolled and was tossed from one side of the road to the other. She couldn't remember anything that happened from the time that she heard her mother yell "Look out!" to the time when she heard the voice of a fireman asking if she could hear him. After the fire crew and EMT's had started working on her parents who were both unconscious, Lilly was whisked away to the hospital to be checked over. After a few hours and having her head wound stitched up, she was asked to wait in the waiting room whilst her emergency contact was called. Whilst she was sat there, her parent's doctor came to see her. _

"_Lillian Truscott" she heard called from across the room._

"_Yes?" she said and jumped up to the doctor, "Are my parents ok, can I see them, please tell me they're ok" she said in rapid fire fashion._

"_Please sit down Lillian, I'm afraid that I have some bad news" Lilly sat as the doctor continued, "I'm afraid that the injuries to your parents were simply too severe and they both died earlier today..." The doctor continued to talk to her to tell her when her parents would be released when he realised that she wasn't paying attention. "Have you called any family down?" he asked, hoping to speak to someone a little older who could help her to handle a situation of this magnitude._

"_Yes ... erm my best friend and her dad are on their way ... I think ... I mean ..." she simply stopped and started staring at the wall, which is how Miley and her dad found her half an hour later._

Miley could feel Lilly shivering in her arms. She didn't know what to do for her friend so she pulled her closer and looked over at her dad. It had been a long time since she had seen her dad look so sad and defeated. He nodded his head and shook the doctor's hand as he turned and walked away. She watched as her dad drew his hand across his face and then through his hair before he turned and looked over at his daughter and her best friend. She met his gaze and she could see the sorrow in his eyes. He made his way over to them and sat down next to Miley, taking one of Lilly's hands in his.

"Lilly bud, you're coming home with us, ok?" he asked. They both looked at Lilly, expecting a response of some kind but the only reaction of any kind was Lilly turning her head into Miley's neck. Miley turned to look at her dad and as she did so she could feel Lilly's tears on her neck.

"Is everything ... sorted? Can we go?" Miley asked her dad.

"Sure bud, whenever Lilly's ready" he confirmed.

"Come on Lilly, we're going home Sweetie" Miley tugged Lilly into a standing position and kept her arms wrapped around her to stop her from falling back and then urged her forward to the car outside. She felt Lilly tense as the car started and Lilly also gripped onto her arm. "It's ok Lils" she whispered into her friend's ear.

A.N. Ok, so the next chapter is written so it will be posted soon but I think I'm gonna finish my "Dads really do know best" story. Please review and let me know what you think.


	2. Chapter 2 What Happens Next

A.N. ok so I thought this chapter was written. Turns out I ... well honestly, I hated it lol, so I had to rewrite a big chunk of it :D but here it is, hope you like it and it lives up to expectations!

Chapter Two – What happens next?

When they got to the Stewarts house, Lilly was emotionally exhausted and felt like she was completely empty. The only thing that was keeping her going completely catatonic was the closeness of her best friend; she knew that when she was ready to talk that Miley would be one of the few people who would understand. Miley had lost one of her parents; she couldn't believe that Miley felt like this every day yet still found the strength to go on without crying every minute.

"Come on Lils, let's get you into bed so you can get some rest" she told Lilly. They started to walk upstairs and when Miley tried to get Lilly to lie down, she refused to let her go so she lay down with her, gently rocking her to sleep. When Lilly's breathing had evened out, Miley slipped out from under her and silently walked downstairs to get some water. Her dad was sat in the kitchen at the table, looking over some papers and he looked up as she walked into the kitchen.

"Hey bud, how's Lilly doin'?" he asked as she got two bottles of water out of the fridge.

"She's asleep right now. I'm worried dad, I mean, I had you and Jackson when mom died but Lilly has no one" Miley confessed as she walked over to the kitchen island and leaned against it to talk to her dad.

"She has us, bud, and don't worry. I never told you this but Lilly's parents had their wills changed last year so should the worst happen that I would become Lilly's guardian. They were worried as they don't have any other family" Miley was silent for a few seconds and then launched herself at her dad to hug him.

"I love you daddy" she told him quietly. The moment was interrupted by a piercing scream from upstairs. Miley ran up the stairs, taking them two at a time with her dad following her closely. Lilly was sat up, bolt straight in bed, staring at the wall and screaming loudly. Miley rushed over to her and pulled her into a hug.

"It's ok Lil, I'm here" she soothed. Lilly pulled Miley to her and sobbed with only a few words able to be picked out.

"Don't leave me Miles, please don't leave me ..."

"I won't, I'm here" Miley whispered, Robbie Ray backed out of the room as Miley comforted Lilly, giving Lilly some privacy, knowing that his daughter would be able to comfort Lilly the most. Eventually the sobs lessened to the occasional sniffle.

"You want to get some more sleep?" Miley asked. Lilly shook her head as she pulled partly away from Miley. "How about a movie? I can put our favourite on" Miley said. Lilly just shrugged and dropped her gaze to their joined hands. Miley frowned slightly, there had to be something she could do that was normal to show Lilly things would get better. She pulled away from Lilly and put on "The Emperor's New Groove" before she returned to the bed to see Lilly shifting uncomfortably. "Do you wanna get changed?" she asked quietly. Lilly nodded slowly so Miley walked over to Lilly and pulled her to her feet, she wobbled slightly but stayed upright and followed Miley as she walked to her chest of drawers on far side of her room. She quickly rooted out her comfiest pair of pyjamas and threw them to Lilly. As Lilly got changed, she also got another pair of pyjamas and quickly changed into them. When Miley was finished she turned around and saw Lilly stood in the middle of the room in the pyjama bottoms but with the shirt still slightly open. She was fumbling with the buttons and was clearly having trouble focusing on them. Miley walked over to her and closed the pieces of cloth fully and buttoned it up.

"There ya go Lils" she whispered. Miley looked into Lilly's eyes and almost cried at the sorrow she saw there. The only other time Lilly had even remotely looked like this was the time when Matt Marshall had stood her up but even then, it had the a little bit funny at how she had cried when Robbie Ray had called her Lilly because "that's what Mat called me". There was absolutely _nothing_ funny about how Lilly looked today. They lay down on the bed with Miley's arms around Lilly to watch the movie that normally had them rolling around on the floor in laughter, however today, both girls were too wrapped up in thoughts to find any of it funny. Even before Kronk accidently lost the Emperor (in llama form), Miley looked down to see Lilly had fallen asleep again so she turned the TV off and closed her eyes as well.

The next morning, Miley woke up to find Lilly cuddled into her side with her right arm around her waist and her right leg over her legs. It was kind of weird to wake up this way with anyone, let alone a girl but this was Lilly. Lilly started to move next to her and opened her eyes. She looked at Miley and as she did, Miley could see when the happenings of yesterday dawned on her and the tears started to fill her eyes.

"Lilly, please don't cry, you're not alone" Miley told her.

"But I'm gonna have to move to my brothers, I'll have to leave you and Oliver. I don't have anyone else"

"You have me. My dad told me something last night Lils, your parents made him your legal guardian. You will move in here with me and dad and Jackson. I promise everything will be ok now" Miley said.

"Your dad ... he really ... he's really gonna do that for me?" she asked, quietly.

"Of course he will, you're practically family Lilly" Miley smiled softly.

The day went by slowly. Neither girl strayed from the bedroom for too long. Lilly only to use the bathroom and Miley only to get food at meal times, of which Lilly only ate some of Robbie Ray's homemade soup at lunch time, saying she wasn't hungry when more food was offered. Lilly felt more exhausted by the end of the day. As she and Miley went to sleep later that evening, she had the fleeting thought that she had survived the first day without her parents. Tears started to silently fall down her cheeks, she didn't want to disturb Miley but she was surprised to find that Miley somehow knew, even in the darkness of the room that Lilly was crying as she felt the other girl pull her into her arms again.

"S'ok Lil, I'm here" Miley whispered sleepily. Lilly didn't respond, she didn't have to. She just drifted into sleep in the security of her best friends embrace.

A.N. Yes I do find "The Emperor's New Groove" _that_ funny, ah well lol :D I know this was another really sad chapter and I'm afraid there won't be much relief until chapter four (there are some funnyish bits in the next chapter tho lol) anyways, please review, thanks Nicki xoxo


	3. Chapter 3 Moving In

A.N. This chapter kinda got a mind of its own when I was writing it hence the length lol :D I hope you guys like it.

Chapter Three – Moving In

When Lilly woke up the next morning, she had every intention of staying in bed for the whole day again. She had so far not spoken to anyone other than Miley, not because she was wanting to be difficult but because the words just refused to come out when she was looking at anyone else. Miley had been told by her dad at breakfast that they were going to go and get Lilly's things from the Truscott's house that day.

"Do you think Lilly will want to come too bud?" he asked as she ate her eggs as quickly as possible to avoid leaving Lilly for longer than was necessary. She paused at looked up at her dad.

"I don't think so dad but I'll ask her" she said sadly. She finished her breakfast and ran back to her room where Lilly was still lying on the bed, staring out of the open balcony doors.

"We're gonna to have to change our room around Lils. Dad and I are gonna go to your house and get your stuff. You need a bed and we'll have to bring your clothes and any other things you want" Miley said, trying to figure out the best way to ask her to come with them but Lillly saved her the trouble.

"I don't think I can go in that house again Miles, I just ... please can you just get me my clothes, school stuff and my skate stuff?" Lilly looked at Miley through teary eyes and Miley felt her heart ache for her best friend.

"Lilly, I really think you should come with me and get your stuff, say goodbye to your parents in a place where you knew them being happy instead of the funeral, but if you really don't want to go, I'll pack your stuff up for you" she told her and she smiled as Lilly nodded her head frantically, "Ok, well me and my dad are gonna go get your stuff and your bed, we'll be a couple of hours. Oliver said he would come and help us, if you need anything, Jackson is downstairs and I have my cell" she told her.

"Thanks Miles, I think I'm just gonna sleep some more" she said closing her eyes. Miley walked out of the room closing the door softly and walked downstairs where she saw Oliver talking softly to her dad and Jackson, he looked up as she walked into the room.

"How is she Miley?" he asked concerned.

"Well so far she'll only talk to me, she's blanked dad and Jackson, maybe you can try when we get back, she's sleeping now" she told him.

"She didn't want to come then Bud?" her dad asked.

"No, I don't think she's ready, I told her it might be good for her, but I don't think she's going to be up for the funeral in a few days let alone dealing with those memories today" she sighed and Oliver wrapped his arm around her shoulder in a friendly half hug.

"Don't worry Miles, we'll get Lilly back to her usual self at some point soon" he told her confidently.

An hour later, she was half way through packing up Lilly's things when her phone rang.

"Hello?" she answered.

"Miley! You need to get home right now!" Jackson told her quickly, there was a screaming in the background which caused her blood to run cold.

"Jackson, what the heck is goin' on?" she said standing up and starting to run downstairs.

"It's Lilly, she woke up screaming and won't stop, I've been trying to calm her down for about 10 minutes but the only thing I can understand through the screaming is your name" he told her.

"I'm on my way Jackson" she told him and hung up without another word as she reached her dad and Oliver who were heaving Lilly's bed into the back of Robbie Ray's pick up truck. "Dad I have to go home, something's wrong with Lilly, home's just down the beach so I'm just gonna run, I need you to finish packing her stuff for me" she told them as she didn't stop but she did slow down.

"Ok bud!" She heard after her as she sped up and started running. It was hard work running across the sand but she made good time and was running through the front room doors in less than five minutes. She ran into her and Lilly's bedroom to see Jackson stood by the bed looking worried and lost with the phone still in his hand. He looked up as she burst into the room and his face showed relief.

"Oh thank God" he sighed but Miley wasn't paying attention as she looked at the pale face of her best friend who was staring straight ahead. She rushed to her side and sat down next to her, pulling her into a hug and started whispering comforts into her ear and pulled her to lie down next to her as she stroked her arm. Lilly stopped screaming and clung to Miley as she pressed her face in the crook of Miley's neck. A few seconds later, Miley felt moisture on her neck where Lilly's tears were falling causing her own tears to fall.

"Do you need anything Miles?" Jackson asked quietly.

"No thanks Jackson" she smiled at him. Jackson hesitated and then asked another question.

"Is she gonna be ok?"

"I know she will, it's just hard for her right now" Miley answered, he nodded in understanding and quietly left the room. They lay in silence for about half an hour before Lilly's even breathing signalled that she had fallen asleep but she still had a hand full of Miley's t-shirt where her hand was resting on Miley's waist. Miley looked down at Lilly's sleeping face and kissed her softly on her forehead before succumbing to sleep. About two hours later she was awakened by a knocking on the door.

"Yeah" she called softly, trying not to wake up Lilly. She looked up to see her dad look around the door.

"Is everything ok bud?" he asked softly.

"Yeah" she whispered back.

"Ok well, we have all of Lilly's stuff, we need to move the beds around so you can sleep in your own beds tonight" he told her, "I can give you half an hour more to let her sleep but then we need to sort this out, ok?" he asked, hating to have to move Lilly when she was obviously upset but needing to.

"Ok Daddy, just give me a minute to wake her up"

"Sure, give me a shout" he told her and gently shut the door. Miley turned her attention to Lilly and noticed that she was awake and staring at her.

"Are you ok Lilly?" she asked.

"Yeah, I'm sorry about before, I couldn't stop screaming, you weren't here when I woke up" Miley sat up taking Lilly with her.

"I was at your house remember, speaking of, dad needs to move the beds round to set your bed up, do you want to get in the shower?" Miley asked.

"Not really but I guess I should, I probably smell bad huh?" she smiled slightly.

"I'll be honest, it's a little stanky" Lilly let go of her grip on Miley's t-shirt and let her get up as she swung her legs off the side of the bed too, "Grab one of the new towels Lil and there's some more three quarter lengths and t-shirts in that drawer there, the guys are probably gonna start putting your bed up so don't come out until your decent" Miley advised. Lilly simply nodded and got up. She did as she was told and got new clothes and a towel but before she disappeared into the bathroom that she now shared with Miley, she turned around.

"Miles?" she said.

"Yes Lil?" Miley responded, looking at the face of her best friend.

"Thanks ... for everything" she thanked and quickly stepped into the bathroom and closed the door before Miley could respond. Miley smiled at this.

"You're welcome" she whispered softly to the now empty room.

Lilly was in the bathroom for about 45 minutes and by the time she was washed, dressed and hair dried, Robbie Ray had placed Lilly's bed in the room at a 90 degree angle to Miley's, optimising the amount of space in their bedroom.

"Wow" Lilly said in awe, as she stepped out of the bathroom, "Having two beds in here makes the room seem much smaller" she looked guilty as she saw this, "Miles maybe I should ..."

"Don't you _dare_ finish that sentence" Miley said forcefully, "You are not going to stay with your brother, he has a degree to finish, which is hard enough with this news but with having to get a job and everything too and the added pressure of having to support his little sister, there's just no way you're doing that because despite the thoughts that are going around that little head of yours, you are not a burden!" she finished by folding her arms and looking at Lilly with a defiant look. Lilly couldn't help but smile at the protectiveness she heard in Miley's voice.

"Ok, I won't say another word about it" she half smiled.

"You better not" Miley threatened, "Now dad's cooked dinner so, let's go eat"

"I'm not really hungry, you go" she said.

"Hell no, Lilly Truscott you are gonna have something to eat, it's been over 24 hours since you ate, you have to have something"

"You sounded just like my mum then" Llily said with a sad smile and then tears started to form and she took a deep breath to try and control them, "She wouldn't want me to mope around like this would she?" Lilly asked.

"No she wouldn't, she'd kick your ass down the stairs and make you sit at the table until you had finished a whole plate of food" Miley confirmed with a grin. Lilly smiled too, albeit a small smile.

"Ok, I'll come and eat something but I don't think I'm ready to talk to anyone yet"

"You do what you feel ready for, daddy and Jackson will understand" Miley stated emphatically, "I didn't talk to anyone but Luanne after Momma died" Lilly looked confused at this.

"Why would you talk to the SheDevil?"

"No, I mean my pet pig" Miley confirmed, "She was a great listener"

Dinner was a quiet affair, Lilly didn't say a word the whole time despite Oliver's attempts to get his friend to open up. Instead she seemed to shrink closer to Miley's side and reached for her free hand to hold. Miley smiled sadly at Oliver as he gave up for that day at least and when Robbie Ray asked Miley to clear up as it was her turn, Lilly got up too and silently started helping as well.

"Lilly you don't have to help tonight" Robbie Ray told her. She simply shrugged and smiled gently at him as she picked up his plate and loaded it into the dishwasher. After they had finished, she looked pleadingly at Miley, who took it as a sign that Lilly was starting to get overwhelmed so she made their excuses and they walked upstairs to their room.

"Are you ok Lil?" Miley asked as she shut the door behind them, "You can talk to Oliver, dad and Jackson you know, they are all here for you"

"I know" Lilly whispered back, "I just ... I don't know why, but I can't seem to speak when there's anyone else in the room, I promise I'll try to talk to them tomorrow"

"Whatever you're comfortable with, Lils, I just want to make sure you know that they are there for you"

The rest of the night was taken up with watching 'Beauty and The Beast'. Both Lilly and Miley loved this film and could practically quote the whole thing. They both usually sang along to the songs together but tonight, Lilly was too upset about her parents and Miley was too concerned for her friend to really pay that much attention. After the film they went to bed, Miley had barely been in bed for 30 minutes and was just about to drop off when she heard whimpering from Lilly's bed. She sat up quickly and saw Lilly tossing and turning in her sleep, obviously in the throes of a nightmare. She got up and quickly moved to sit next to Lilly's head where she proceeded to stroke to hair softly and whisper words of comfort, after a few seconds, Lilly's eyes slowly opened and she weakly smiled at Miley.

"I was screaming again huh?" she asked.

"No, you were tossing and turning, I knew you were having a nightmare" she smiled back softly. She stood up and went to her own bed, both girls falling into an exhausted sleep. Lilly started having another nightmare where she was in the car with her parents and the truck was hitting them over and over again. She woke up panting heavily and looked wildly around the room. Miley was still sound asleep so she figured she hadn't screamed but she couldn't calm down. She needed the comfort of her best friend. She hadn't had any nightmares the two nights before when Miley had held her all night. She tiptoed over to Miley's bed and lay down next to her, pulling the cover back over them. As she snuggled up against Miley she felt the other girl wake up slightly.

"Lil, what's goin' on?" she murmured, still half asleep.

"I had another nightmare, please can I sleep next to you again tonight?" she asked, tightening her hold on Miley as if afraid she would say no. Miley moved to allow her to wrap her arms around Lilly as well and whispered into the crown of her head.

"'Course" she sighed out the word and they were both asleep before either could think another thought.

The next few days were the worst that Lilly had ever experienced. First, her brother came back to Malibu to attend their parent's funeral and secondly everywhere Lilly went she had people sending her pitying stares. She could handle people being sympathetic but when people pitied her she found herself losing her temper. At the funeral, she had not let go of Miley's hand for the whole service, she didn't cry but instead seemed to hold all her emotion at bay. The time that was the worst was when they went to the will reading at her parents solicitors. They had split their money between the two, Lilly's to lie in trust until she turned 18. Their house was left to the two of them as the mortgage had been completely paid off. Their cars were to be sold and the cost split between them. They had also been left a note each from their parents, explaining the decision to have Mr Stewart look after Lilly. At her parent's heartfelt words about always watching over them, Lilly had burst into tears, her brother was also teary but he kept a marginal hold over them. It was decided that they would keep the house so that when her brother came back to Malibu he had somewhere to stay and for in case Lilly left the Stewarts when she was older and had nowhere else to go. Mr Stewart frowned when they told him this.

"Now Lilly, you know you'll always be welcome in our house, you live there now too" he told them.

"I know Mr Stewart and I don't think I'll ever be able to stay there again, but this is important to my brother. He knows why my parents made you my guardian but he still wants to look after me in some way, he just feels that he's doing something" she explained.

"In that case, I'll see to having the house secured if you'd like?" he offered.

"Yes please" she nodded. For four days after the accident, Lilly would start off in her bed for the night and then at some point would end up in Miley's due to nightmares. After the fourth night of this Miley thought she had best say something.

"Lilly, what's going on with these nightmares?" she asked.

"I don't know Miles, all I know is I don't have them when I sleep next to you" Lilly sighed, looking at her hands so as not to make eye contact with Miley. Miley thought on this for a moment.

"Well, I guess you should just sleep with me for a while, I mean at least until you feel ready" she stated causing Lilly to snap her head up.

"Are you sure?"

"You're my best friend! If I offer you comfort, even just by being close when we're asleep then I'll offer it" she said emphatically. Lilly hadn't quite been truthful with her best friend. She knew why Miley gave her so much comfort, she just couldn't tell her, especially not now. She had been having feelings for her for about the past year. They were 17 now and it had been quite a shock for Lilly to one day look at Miley and appreciate her in an entirely different way. The fact that it was just Miley that she looked at in this way made it difficult for her to categorise her sexuality. She still goggled at nice guys on the beach and on the odd occasion where she tried to look at other girls in the same way as she did with guys and Miley, she just didn't feel anything. She thought she could be categorised as bisexual but surely that meant she would feel things for more than just one girl? It was really confusing to her but she didn't deny to herself that she had these feeling for Miley. She knew Miley would not abandon her as a friend and had been going to tell her. She had told her mum who was supportive but with this recent adjustment, she knew it would just be awkward. So at night when she dreamt, she didn't only see her parents dying but Miley laughing at her true feelings and walking away and her brother disowning her. No, she couldn't tell Miley, besides there was nothing to tell really, it's not like they'd ever be girlfriends, Lilly felt lucky enough to be just her friend. If Miley had heard these thoughts she'd have been really angry at Lilly for letting herself be so self depreciating. Lilly snapped herself out of her thoughts and smiled at Miley.

"Thanks Miles you're the best"

A.N. I hope everyone likes this chapter, please please please review, they really do make your day :D Thanks Nicki xoxo


	4. Chapter 4 Back To School

A.N. So I wasn't going to update this until tomorrow but My Personal Rose said I had to update as soon as possible so I'm updating today :D enjoy!

Chapter Four – Back To School

One week after the accident, Lilly decided that she wanted to go back to school, to try and get things back to normal so she and Miley went back. They were early when they arrived but as more and more students started to fill the halls, Lilly got more and more pitying stares. She felt angry at this and pressured to be crying or looking like she had been crying. Instead she took Miley's hand in hers and got strength from their contact. Miley smiled, understandingly at her as they waited for the first bell. They had six classes and lunch together, it was simply the third class that they didn't have together. She made it through the first two classes by focusing on the comforting presence of Miley sat next to her but during the third class she felt nervous and upset. She felt her breathing become more rapid throughout the class. She practically leapt from her seat to go and meet Miley for their next class and pulled her into a hug the minute she saw her. She felt her breathing even out and she breathed in the familiar scent that was uniquely Miley.

"Hey are you ok Lils?" Miley asked wrapping her own arms around Lilly but before she could answer, Amber had entered the room.

"Truscott, that's really wrong now she's your sister" She sneered. Amber had been calling Lilly a lesbian for the past two years. Lilly actually found it rather amusing as she knew she was half right, only Amber didn't know this.

"Back off Amber, Lilly's my best friend and I won't have you taking the piss any more" she growled. Lilly looked up at Miley and let go as she said the first thing in front of anyone at school.

"Miles it's ok, she can say what she wants, I know the truth and I'm comfortable with who I am, if she wants to make up rumours its probably most likely because she's a lesbian herself" she said to Miley and she gave her a small grin and Miley burst out laughing as Amber fumed. Before she could retort the teacher came in the room and the lesson started. Miley was confused about what Lilly had said _"I know the truth and I'm comfortable with who I am"_. She quickly jotted down a note a slipped it on Lilly's desk which was next to hers whilst the teachers wasn't looking.

_What did you mean by you're comfortable with who you are? _ She had written. Lilly read the note and quickly glanced at Miley before writing a quick reply. _I'll explain later_. Miley shrugged and smiled at Lilly who smiled back despite the nervousness she was now feeling. She didn't know whether or not she should tell Miley the truth. She knew that Miley wouldn't abandon her but it might be the end off their sleeping in the same bed and she didn't know if she could sleep without that safety net of comfort yet. She simply hoped that Miley would forget. When lunch came around they quickly headed out to their table. Oliver was already there.

"Hey Miley, Lilly, how's the first day back going?" he asked.

"Pretty good, Lilly put Amber in her place before" Miley said smiling at Lilly.

"You spoke to Amber?" he asked turning his attention to Lilly. She shook her head and tried to talk to Oliver but couldn't quite focus enough to say the words so she looked and Miley and felt calm again, especially when Miley took her hand. Still looking at Miley she finally spoke.

"No I was talking to Miley when Amber was being horrible to her" she turned to look at Oliver and smiled shyly at him. He looked at their joined hands and smiled. He wasn't quite the donut that the girls thought he was. He had known for some time now how Lilly liked Miley as more than just friends. He could see it in the way that she acted. She got the same sort of dazed and glazed over look sometimes with Miley that she did about the guys she fancied. His bet was that his best friend since kindergarten was bi but didn't know how to tell Miley that she had a crush on her.

"It's good that you protected Miley, Lils" he smiled and winked at her as Miley turned to look at Lilly as well so that Miley didn't see. Lilly was shocked. Oliver knew! How did he know!

"So Lils you said you'd explain later?" she questioned. Lilly paused before she finally spoke up again.

"Can you just give me a couple of days, I need to think about some stuff first Miles, I will tell you what's going on though I promise"

"Course, you tell me whatever it is when you're ready"

That night saw Lilly and Miley fall asleep in the position that they had grown accustomed to over the last week, Miley on her back holding Lilly with her right arm around her back with Lilly curled into her side hugging her to her with her right arm around Miley's waist. Miley woke up about 2am to a strange feeling. Lilly's hand had found its way to the gap in her pyjama's where the top separated from the bottoms and had rested on the pale skin of her stomach and Lilly's lips were touching her collar bone, her breath was steady against her throat. She lay perfectly still for about five minutes as she got used to the sensations she was feeling due to the contact. The lips on her collar bone caused the skin there to tingle and the breath coming from Lilly's lips tickled her skin. Where Lilly's hand was resting on her stomach, she felt that her touch was literally burning her. Why did this feel so good? It was Lilly, not some guy. Maybe that was why it did feel so good, it wasn't some person she had barely got to know, she knew Lilly, she loved Lilly.

And that's when it hit Miley, she loved Lilly not just like a friend loves a friend but as so much more. After this realisation she felt a rush of desire for her slumbering best friend which she quickly stamped down on. A few seconds later however she had a very hard time on stopping a groan escaping her throat when Lilly licked her lips in her sleep, slightly sweeping Miley's throat. Her eyes rolled back in her head and she tried to calm her body back down. It was like the floodgates had opened and now she knew exactly how she felt she could also more appreciate her body's reactions to Lilly. She had to stop feeling like this. Lilly was her best friend and she needed her right now. She didn't need Miley to have these feelings for her especially not now and besides she liked guys and Lilly liked guys, there was no chance anything would happen between them. She was a guy magnet, she did not like girls. She sighed heavily and closed her eyes, tying to clear her mind.

She did eventually manage to go back to sleep.

A.N. So Miley and Lilly both now realise their feelings for each other, will they get together? ... are things ever that simple? Lol ;) Please review, thanks Nicki xoxo


	5. Chapter 5 Confusions and Complications

A.N. Ok so I know the first few chapters have been really quite sad and showing Lilly as very upset and needy, but from here on, she will start to get a little better and start to fight a bit more like the normal Lilly :D

Chapter Five – Confusions and Complications

The next morning found both girls waking up in slightly different positions than those that they were used to. They had shifted so they were facing each other. Lilly's right hand was still under Miley's pyjama top only slightly higher than it had been the previous night, resting on the bottom of her ribs. Miley's left hand echoed this position and their faces were inches apart. Lilly woke up about 45 minutes earlier than the alarm and yawned widely. She opened her eyes and stared straight into the sleeping face of Miley and then realised where her hand was on Miley's ribs but before she could move it she realised where Miley's was and she broke into a huge smile. Could she possibly feel the same? She saw the flickering of Miley's eyelids and quickly shut hers and evened her breathing out. She wanted to see how Miley reacted to their positions. Miley smiled to herself as she saw how they had shifted in the night and looked into Lilly's face. She placed a soft kiss on Lilly's cheek and then pulled away to start getting ready for the day.

Lilly couldn't help but feel a little confused. She lay there perfectly still as she tried to make sense of her best friend. They are always touchy feely with each, have been since they first met, but Miley wakes up in the position that they were in and kisses her (on the cheek granted, but it felt intimate and more than a best friend would do). Lilly decided it didn't make sense; she needed to talk to Miley about it ... when she could get the courage to do so.

Miley wasn't faring much better. When she had woken up and noticed what their position was and felt elated, to the point that she had kissed Lilly's cheek and felt immediately guilty. Why was she doing this? Lilly was having a hard enough time as it was and now she was adding this? No, she had to put Lilly first and right now she needed her best friend not some loser who has a crush on her that she doesn't reciprocate. She shook her thoughts off and headed for the bathroom not seeing Lilly open her eyes and watch her.

Miley and Lilly went through their normal morning routine and before they knew it they were back at school. Lilly was once again incredibly uncomfortable at the pitying stares she was getting and shrank closer to Miley whilst they were stood at their lockers.

"You ok, Lil?" Miley asked as she noticed this.

"Yeah, it's just ..." Lilly started, but was interrupted when someone sidled up to Miley on her other side and leaned against the lockers. It was Richard Bruce. Lilly's heart sank, she knew Miley liked Richard, she thought he had "amazing eyes" and from the look in those eyes, he was about to ask her out.

"Hey Miley, 'Sup Lilly" he smirked, and Lilly had to resist the urge to roll her eyes, "Miley, I was ..." he started but this time Miley interrupted him.

"Hang on a sec" she gave him a small smile before turning back to Lilly, "Lils?" she prompted. Lilly was a little shocked, she wouldn't lie. Miley was actually telling the guy she had a crush on to wait whilst they finished their conversation.

"N-nothing, just the usual pitying stares" she stuttered.

"You sure?" Miley asked as she took Lilly's hand in hers. She then seemed satisfied at Lilly's answering nod and smile so she turned back to Richard, "Yeah Richard?" she asked. He looked a little put out that she hadn't dropped everything to talk to him but recovered himself well.

"I was wondering if you'd want to go out with me on Friday?" he asked, probably in what he thought was a winning voice.

"Well ..." Miley hesitated and looked at Lilly, she didn't really want to go out with Richard anymore, sure he was cute, but Lilly was who she wanted to be with plus she was having a hard time with how she felt for the blonde not to mention the events that had recently happened in Lilly's life. Lilly noticed her hesitation and thought it was because Miley was feeling sorry for leaving Lilly alone and felt a twinge of guilt and disappointment. She squeezed her hand and nodded at Miley, trying to smile in encouragement. Miley sighed a little but turned back to Richard.

"Yeah ok" she replied through clenched teeth. She smiled but it didn't reach her eyes and Richard didn't look close enough to notice.

"Awesome! So I'll pick you up at 7?" he said in more of a statement than a question. He didn't even wait for her confirmation before leaving and walking down the hall. Miley frowned slightly at his retreating back. Why had she agreed to do that? She turned to Lilly who was staring at their joint hands.

"So that's gonna be interesting" she forced a half genuine smile.

"Yeah" Lilly agreed. The day went extremely slowly for both Miley and Lilly. Lunch time came around and Miley was asked to stay by the teacher for a talk about her latest assignment. Oliver insisted that she walk with him to the canteen, so after a quick pleading glance at Miley who could only smile helplessly as the teacher closed the door, they were on their way.

"Ok Lilly, so how long have you felt like this?" Oliver asked. Lilly looked at him but didn't say anything, "Oh don't give me that look Truscott, I know you're going through a hard time right now but I've known you since kindergarten and I've managed to spot every crush you've ever had"

"I-i-it's complicat-t-ted" she stuttered. Oliver gave her his 'ya think' look. By this time they had reached the canteen. He grabbed two trays and handed one to Lilly as they took their place in the queue.

"Let me guess" he whispered, after shooting a quick look around to make sure they weren't being listened to, "You're not sure she feels the same, you're worried that since you're now living together, actually sharing a room, that this will make things incredibly complicated, blah blah blah" he finished. Lilly smiled at this and Oliver was glad, he really did understand but he thought they were perfect for each other. Lilly gathered her strength to try to speak without stuttering to her oldest friend.

"It's not just that. R-Richard Bruce asked h-her out" she told him.

"And she said yes?" he asked. Lilly nodded and looked at her feet. "I still think you should tell her" he said with conviction. Before either could say another word, Miley appeared at Lilly's side, looping her arm around Lilly's shoulders.

"Hey guys, what'd I miss?" she asked with a smile. Lilly melted into her friends half embrace listening to Oliver say something about skateboarding that they both knew would have Miley's mind glazing over from boredom although she wouldn't show it. Oliver was right, she had to at least tell Miley, just tell her and not expect anything in return. She's learnt a very valuable life lesson recently, in the most painful way.

Life is too short to put things off, and she wasn't going to any more. Enough was enough.

A.N. Ok so the next chapter is all about Lilly telling Miley. Hope you liked this one and please review, I LOVE reviews :D thanks Nicki xoxo


	6. Chapter 6 Telling Miley

A.N. Sorry about the long wait, I've been having some difficulties writing this particular chapter, anyways, here it is!

Chapter Six – Telling Miley

When Miley and Lilly got home that afternoon, Robbie Ray was sitting in the kitchen. She smiled as they walked in.

"Afternoon girls, how was school?" he asked.

"Good daddy" Miley smiled. Lilly paused a second before she spoke as well.

"O-Ok Mr S" she said softly. Robbie Ray paused and looked up at Lilly with a smile on his face.

"It's good to hear your voice again baby girl" Robbie Ray told her sincerely. Lilly gave a small smile in return before she looked at Miley who had a huge smile on her face, happy that her friend was starting to feel better.

"We need to get our homework done daddy, so can you call us when dinner is ready?" she asked.

"Sure bud" he agreed, still smiling.

The evening went by in the usual way. Miley and Lilly finished their homework and after their dinner, they took a walk on the beach. Normally Lilly would take a Frisbee or a ball for them to play with but today she just wanted to walk and talk with Miley. When they made it back to their house, it was quite late and after saying another quick hello to Robbie Ray, they also said good night and they ran up the stairs to their bedroom. Lilly entered after Miley and shut their door as she turned to look at her. She had collapsed on the bed so she walked over and did the same. She knew now was the time, she had to tell her now. Lilly took a breath, sat up and looked back up at Miley who also sat up at the serious expression on her best friends face. The words had been there; ready to say but one look at Miley's blue eyes and she was suddenly speechless. She froze until Miley started waving her hand in front of her face.

"Helloooo ... Earth to Lilly ... Lils, you ok?" she asked. Lilly shook herself and smiled weakly.

"Yeah, I'm fine ... just ... I need to tell you something. You don't have to do anything, I just need to tell you this and I really hope that it doesn't change anything between us, I don't want it to" she said.

"Ok" Miley drew out the word slowly as she watched that Lilly was nervously playing with the end of the sleeves of her long sleeved t-shirt. "Lils, you can tell me anything, you know that. It's ok, everything's going to be ok" she soothed still not quite sure what the problem was.

"I know" she admitted, still smiling weakly. She waited a few seconds, studying Miley's concerned expression before taking another deep breath. "I love you" she blurted out. She winced slightly to herself. That was not the graceful admission she had envisioned. There was another long pause. "Miley please say something?"

"I ... I ... I have a date" Miley said blindly. She was in complete shock. Lilly felt the same as she did; this had to be a dream ... or a cruel joke. Her first thought had been to confess her undying love for Lilly as well but then she remembered she had a date with Richard Bruce and it wouldn't be fair to just ditch him with no reason at all. She also didn't know how she felt about dating a girl. That sounded stupid, even to her own mind, but she had only just realised her feelings for Lilly. Could she really date her so soon? And there was the issue of them sharing a room now. Her dad would not be pleased to have them sharing a room if they were dating. She was almost positive that he wouldn't care she was dating a girl but he would probably have a problem with them sleeping together (even with it being as innocent as it was). So she had blurted out the second thought, that she had a date. She looked up at Lilly and saw how Lilly's face had dropped at this, "I mean ... well I do have a date but this doesn't have to change anything between us at all, just like you said. I love you too Lils, you know that" Miley said, purposefully leaving the statement at that as she didn't want to say that she just loved Lilly as a friend, she couldn't lie to Lilly but she could leave things out.

"It's ok Miles. I understand ... really. I just wanted you to know and now ... you do, so maybe we should get ready for bed, it's getting late" Lilly said as she stood and started searching for her pyjamas. Miley watched Lilly sadly, as she quickly walked into the bathroom. Her thoughts were occupied by the blonde as she changed and waited for Lilly to come out of the bathroom so she could brush her teeth. Ten minutes later, Miley was walking back into the bedroom but stopped short at the sight of her empty bed. She quickly looked around the room and noticed Lilly lying with her back to Miley's bed, apparently asleep.

"Lilly?" she whispered. There was no answer and Miley's heart sank, she was pulling away. Stupid Richard Bruce and his bad timing. Why couldn't she just tell Lilly how she felt and then get rid of Richard Bruce tomorrow? No, she had agreed to a date on Friday, she'd go, but she had to do something about Lilly. She walked closer and tried again, speaking a little louder, "Lilly?" still no answer. Miley sighed heavily and got into bed, turning off the lamp on her bedside table. She lay awake for quite a while, until she eventually heard whimpering coming from Lilly's bed. She was having another nightmare. She quickly stood up and walked over to Lilly, lifting the covers and slipping in next to her. She pulled Lilly close to her, stroking her hair in comfort as she tried to calm her best friend. After a few seconds, the whimpering turned a little louder and what Lilly was whimpering became easier to understand.

"No! ... no don't ... you can't ... please ... love you ... NO! ... MILEY! Come back!" she yelled the last bit and sat upright in bed, breathing heavily. She looked wildly around the room and then down at Miley. When she realised that Miley was lying next to her she threw herself in Miley's arms, sobbing. "Please don't leave me Miley, please don't go"

"Lilly, please don't cry. I mean you told me probably the biggest secret that tests most friendships earlier and I'm still right here. I will NEVER leave you. You, my dear Lillian, are stuck with me" Miley smiled, as she stroked Lilly's back in comfort. Lilly sniffled slightly before gaining control of herself once more.

"You're right, I'm just being silly ... again" Lilly gave Miley a watery grin before they both lay down properly, getting comfortable in their usual positions, where Lilly drifted off almost instantly. Before falling into a peaceful sleep herself, Miley kissed Lilly on her forehead.

"I love you too" she whispered and closed her eyes.

A.N. So this definitely isn't my best work, I wanted to show Miley as really conflicted, wanting to tell Lilly but still feeling obligated to go on the date with Richard plus the fact the struggling with her true feelings ... I hope that came across ok but please review and tell me what you think, pleaseeee lol thanks Nicki xoxo


	7. Chapter 7 More Confusion

A.N. I actually quite like this chapter, it's a bit of a filler until the date though (which is in the next chapter :D), anyways enjoy!

Chapter Seven – More Confusion

Miley woke up the next day half hanging out of Lilly's smaller bed. She groaned as she tried to stretch but she found herself unable to do so due to the blonde actually lying on top of her. She grinned then winced as she moved awkwardly which caused Lilly to wake up. She yawned as she sat up and stretched and then looked down at Miley in the awkward position she was still stuck in and giggled.

"Tonight we sleep in my bed" Miley grumbled as she pulled herself into a sitting position too.

"Yeah" Lilly agreed as she grin grew with Miley's words. "I guess your bed is bigger" she laughed again as Miley's response couldn't be made out through her grumbling. "I am sorry about last night, I guess I was just trying to make it easier on us both but I also guess I just need you too much right now huh?" she joked, causing Miley to laugh out loud at her words.

"I guess you do" she smirked as she finally got out of bed and walked over to the bathroom. As Miley walked out of the bedroom and into the bathroom, Lilly watched her covertly. She admired the way her hips swung and the way her hair fell over her shoulder perfectly, even after having only just got up and having bed hair she looked perfect to Lilly. As Miley shut the door to the bathroom, Lilly fell backwards onto the bed and sighed to herself. She just wanted one day where everything her way but she knew that the minute they got to school that Richard Bruce would be there and he would want to spend breaks and lunch her Miley. That meant that she would have to smile when all she would want to do would be to hit him in his pretty little face ... well it might make her feel better to do that but Miley wouldn't like it. She stood up and started to pick out what she would wear that day and consoled herself with the thought that maybe Miley would find him as shallow as she found Jake but on the first date.

When lunch time rolled around, Lilly and Miley had still yet to see Richard Bruce. Miley walked over to their lockers with Lilly to dump their books when Oliver walked over to meet them.

"Hey Ladies" he smiled.

"Hi Oliver" Miley smiled as Lilly managed to also stutter out a quick "Hi". Oliver looked at Miley as they started to walk towards the cafeteria.

"So Richard is really spreading it around that you two have a date on Friday" he told them. Miley's heart sank at the words, she didn't want it spread around and Lilly almost physically winced but managed to keep her expression neutral.

"Why can't he keep it zipped?" she frowned as she thought out loud. Both Lilly and Oliver looked at her at this but Lilly spoke first.

"Are you ok, Miles?" she asked, more than a bit confused. She had thought that this was what Miley had wanted.

"Yeah, I had just wanted to keep our date on the DL and now I guess I should go ask him to be a bit more discreet" she sighed.

"But why do you want to keep it discreet?" Lilly asked, still confused. "I mean, I thought you liked him?"

"I did ... I mean I do, it's just ... I guess I'm having second thoughts" she stumbled through her words, realising she may have said a little too much. There was silence as the three friends queued for their lunch and walked over to their usual table. They had just sat down when Richard walked into the cafeteria. Miley stood up and looked down at Lilly. "I'm just gonna go and talk to Richard, I'll be right back"

"Ok" Lilly acknowledged and Miley walked away from their table towards Richard. Oliver watched Lilly keenly as she watched Miley walk towards him.

"Lilly, can I ask you a question?" he asked. She pried her attention away from Miley and towards Oliver. She raised her eyebrow slightly and smirked a little but nodded. "You don't stutter with Miley at all, do you know why?" he asked. Lilly a paused for a moment, then looked Oliver dead in the eye.

"Because my heart doesn't stutter" she said, her voice remaining steady. Oliver smiled at his friend and they continued eating their lunch in mutual silence until Lilly spoke again. "I'm just g-gonna go to the t-toilet" Lilly said as she stood and walked towards to bathroom. She had barely entered the door when Miley came back and sat down. She looked around as she did so before turning to Oliver.

"Where's Lilly?" she asked, a slight note of panic entering her voice.

"She's just gone to the toilet" Oliver told her through a mouthful of burger.

"Is is ok? Did she seem upset?" Miley asked quickly, all of her attention on Oliver now. He looked up at her and studied her for a second before putting his half eaten burger back on his plate. This was all starting to add up to him. Firstly Lilly's crush on Miley that he now knew was way more than a crush and her jealousy over Richard Bruce but then there was Miley's behaviour as well. She was constantly protecting Lilly and now, after months of trying to get to go out with THE Richard Bruce she was having second thoughts? It seemed to him that she knew how Lilly felt which could only mean one thing.

"She told you" he said calmly. Miley opened her mouth to refute this but realised it was probably futile to deny it as Oliver obviously knew.

"Yeah, she told me last night" she admitted.

"And what did you say?" Oliver asked, a smirk appearing on his face. He really wished that Miley had confessed how she felt but he knew that this was probably severely unlikely.

"Oliver..." Miley warned, not wanting to get into this in the middle of the cafeteria of all places.

"No Miley, I want to know how you feel, or at the very least, what you said" he whispered to her, realising why she was getting so upset. She would not want to make this kind of admission where they were so easily to be overheard, but he had to know.

"I'm going out with Richard on Friday and Lilly ... she's my best friend and I love her but she's in a different place to me" Miley whispered furiously

"And which 'place' are you in Miley?" Oliver asked seriously.

"... Switzerland. It's very neutral there and they make very nice watches!" Miley snapped out as she pulled her lunch tray to her and took a huge bite of her burger.

"Miley, you have to tell her" Oliver whispered hurriedly as he saw Lilly emerge from the bathroom. Miley simply shook her head and stared at the table, however when Lilly sat down next to her she quickly swallowed the burger she had been eating to smile at her.

"Hey guys, what're ya talking about?" Lilly asked first looking at Miley then at Oliver.

"Just school stuff" Oliver shrugged as he picked up his half eaten burger and started to eat too. Lilly knew that they were probably talking about her but as Miley took her hand and smiled at her, she found that she didn't care. She just wanted to make it until Saturday without doing something stupid.

A.N. I've only just started chapter eight and I either chapter eight or chapter nine will be another long one ... maybe both, I haven't decided lol :D, anyways please review, thanks Nicki xoxo


	8. Chapter 8 Drowning

A.N. Please don't kill me for how long it has taken to get this chapter posted. I had a really bad case of writers block (My Personal Rose and HannahLillyJBfan can both attest to this because I haven't shut up moaning about it for like the last two weeks lol) but here it is! ... Chapter eight! :D I hope it's worth the wait.

Chapter Eight – Drowning

The day of Miley's date dawned like every other day. A beautiful sunrise over the Pacific Ocean with the rays gently seeping through the small gap in the curtains of Miley and Lilly's room. The two young women were lying close together, in their usual positions. Lilly stirred first due to the ray of sunshine hitting her face. She groggily wiped her eyes and then turned her head to look at the sleeping Miley. Lilly loved it when she woke first and could simply lie and watch Miley sleep peacefully. She watched as Miley scrunched her nose in annoyance and moved to lie on her front, snuggling her face into Lilly's shoulder. Miley sighed in her sleep and her breath tickled Lilly's skin as she exhaled. As Lilly thought about what classes they had that day, she remembered that today was the Big Date. Her smile faded and she couldn't help but pull Miley more tightly to her as she thought that she could very realistically lose Miley soon. As she had this thought, her heart rate started to increase and her breaths came faster. She was panicking. She lay there for a few minutes trying to calm herself down but having no success when she heard Miley speak.

"What's wrong, Lils?" she asked sleepily as she pushed herself up to her elbow to look down at Lilly.

"What? Nothing" Lilly quickly said as she looked up into Miley's sleepy face, which frowned slightly as she regarded Lilly.

"Oh no Truscott, out with it" she demanded, "You were panicking, I could feel it" she said. Lilly couldn't, she just couldn't tell her what was wrong. She tried to slip out from underneath Miley but Miley was for once, too quick for her and after a few minutes of a skirmish, Miley came out still on top but holding Lilly down by her arms. "Lilly!" she said, forcefully. "Look at me!" Lilly shook her head and refused to look at her. Miley sighed and desperately tried to think of a way to get Lilly to open up, and then it hit her. "Lilly please, we're best friends; I thought we could tell each other everything"

She felt a little bad using that line especially as she was holding something back from her, but Lilly had used it on her once before and now it was payback time. Lilly froze as she heard the words; she knew that Miley would only use that line if she really wanted to know something. She slowly turned her head to look Miley in the eye and gave her a small smile. She was going to have to lie, for the first time in her life; she was going to have to lie to her best friend. She took a deep breath before she spoke.

"I just had a bad dream, it wasn't a nightmare like I've had before, and you chase those away" Lilly smiled up at her. Miley watched her for a few seconds and her heart dropped, Lilly must really want to keep this a secret if she was lying to her. It was at this moment she realised their positions. She was currently straddling one of Lilly's thighs, keeping the leg trapped between her own as her hands held down Lilly's hands. She quickly glanced back to Lilly's face which was much closer than she realised. She was instantly distracted from Lilly's lie and blushed as she quickly sat up, making her way to the bathroom as she responded to her best friend.

"Right ok, that's good then, so ... I'm gonna hit the shower, I won't be longs Lils" and before Lilly could even sit up, the door had shut leaving Lilly sat with her own very guilty thoughts. As Miley got into the shower, she had the same realisation that Lilly had first thing that morning. Today was the day of her date with Richard.

As Miley and Lilly both went through their usual morning routines, there was the lack of their usual banter as both young women were trying to avoid their own issues, namely Lilly was trying to avoid her insecurities over Miley's date and her guilt over lying to her and Miley was trying to avoid the rush of feelings she had for Lilly and the disappointment she felt that she thought Lilly had lied to her. They walked in silence to school and got out their books. Lilly finally spoke when she shut her locker door.

"Miley" she started, "I'm sorry about this morning" she finished and leant against her locker. She looked at Miley who wasn't looking at her; she sighed internally and stepped closer. "Please look at me" she begged. Miley finally looked up.

"You lied to me" she stated.

"Yes I did" Lilly agreed, "Please just trust that I'll tell you when I'm ready" she asked. Miley looked at Lilly and saw that she was serious. Her bad mood instantly deflated and she just went back to feeling bad about how she felt that morning.

"Ok" Miley agreed. "I won't ask you again, I trust you'll tell me when you're ready on the condition that you _promise_ me you won't _ever_ lie to me again" she punctuated the words with a job in Lilly's shoulder. Lilly smiled and pulled Miley into a hug.

"I promise Miles" she whispered into her ear. Just then the warning bell rang and the hall was suddenly full of students and teachers going in every direction. As they pulled apart they glanced at each other quickly and smiled before grabbing their bags and heading towards their class without another word. In third period Miley walked away from Lilly and towards her class when Oliver came rushing up next to her.

"Hey Miles" he said.

"Hey Oliver" she responded and she suddenly got an idea. "Oliver would you mind coming round to ours tonight and hanging out with Lilly, I don't want her to be on her own, she's been having nightmares and I'm worried" she asked.

"You mean you don't want to give her chance to dwell on the fact that you're gonna be out with Mr. Perfect" he smirked.

"He's hardly Mr. Perfect" Miley grumbled before Oliver laughed.

"Yeah that's no problem Miles, do you want me to ask her?" he queried.

"Yeah please, I don't want her to think I'm wanting someone to baby sit her because I'm really not" she replied quickly as they sat down.

"Yeah yeah" he smiled; "I'll ask her at lunch" further discussions were put on hold by their teacher starting the class.

At lunch they were sat eating when Oliver came rushing over.

"Hey girls" he smiled. They both grinned in return before he turned to Lilly. "Hey Lils, you fancy a movie night tonight?" he asked as he started on his lunch, "You know, like we used to"

"Sure" she grinned, "That's s-sounds cool"

Miley smiled as her two best friends started discussing what movie they were going to watch and tried to think of good ways to get Richard to not ask for a second date, which was kind of new territory for her as she had always done the exact opposite in the past and been looking for ways to get a second date.

That evening, as Miley was getting ready, Lilly was watching her out of the corner of her eye. She looked so beautiful it was untrue.

"Lilly which earrings do you think I should wear?" Miley asked suddenly, holding up the two choices.

"The silver ones" Lilly replied. Miley nodded and asked another question as she started to put them on.

"So what time is Oliver coming over?"

"He said about eight. His mom has threatened grounding if he doesn't finish that essay on geography tonight" Lilly smiled as Miley laughed at this.

"That boy really is a donut. Why does he leave every assignment until the last minute, you'd have thought he'd have learnt by now" she wondered out loud.

"Yeah but he just seems to be getting worse, you know he did his math homework during the lunch yesterday, which is fine but he leant on my back to write it as we were walking to class!" she exclaimed. They both giggled more at this until Miley turned around to face Lilly. Their giggles faded as they looked into each eyes and several long seconds passed until Lilly spoke, her voice sounding slightly louder than it was due to the complete silence in the room. "You look so beautiful Miles" she complimented causing Miley to smile softly.

Their moment was interrupted by Robbie Ray calling from downstairs.

"MILEY!" he yelled, "You're date's here!"

"Ok Daddy, I'll be right down!" she called back. Miley looked back at Lilly who was now looking down at the bed cover she was sitting on, playing with an invisible string. "Well I guess I should be going" she tried to smile but failed miserably. Lilly's response could only be described as a grunt. Miley stood, grabbed her jacket and purse and walked to the door; she had just placed her hand on the handle when she felt a hand on her shoulder.

"Wait ..." Lilly said softly, Miley turned to face her and they looked each other in the eye for a minute until Lilly finally spoke again, "I ... I ... I hope you have a good time" she pulled Miley into a hug which the other girl gladly returned.

"I'll see you later Lils" she said as they broke the hug. This time Lilly's smile was a real one.

"I'm not gonna wait up, so if I'm hogging the covers it's your own lookout" she joked and with one final smile and goodbye, Miley had gone. Lilly turned to the empty room in hopes of finding something to keep her entertained and therefore not thinking of Miley but the only thing to greet her was the huge pile of homework she herself had yet to complete. She shrugged as she walked over to the desk, now was as good a time as any to make a start. She worked solidly for about an hour, resolutely ignoring any thought of what Miley might be doing right now until there was a knock at the door. She got up and opened the bedroom door and was greeted by the grinning was of Oliver.

"Hey O-Oliver" she smiled as she let him in.

"Hey there Lils, I've got the Godfather to watch, ya gotta respect the classic" he smiled.

"Great!" she replied and quickly turned on the DVD player and put in the disk that Oliver offered her.

They sat in companionable silence for about half an hour until Oliver spoke again.

"How you doin' Lils?" he asked with his eyes still glued to the screen so he didn't see the annoyed looked she shot him.

"Don't g-go th-there Oliver" she warned.

"I just want you to be happy" he said turning to face her.

"Oh y-yeah, Oliver, M-Miley's out on her date w-with W-wonder Boy and I'm so happy I'm M-Mary Freaking Poppins!" Lilly yelled, she shot her hand to her mouth, a little shocked at the forcefulness of her reaction.

"It's ok Lils" he said, and pulled her into a half embrace, "I'd be willing to bet my entire music collection that Miley is having a horrible time on this date tonight"

"I don't w-want her to have a h-horrible time ... I j-just want her t-to hate Richard" she clarified with a sigh.

Meanwhile, Miley was indeed having a horrible date. First, Richard had managed to annoy her dad and then he had taken her to a veggie restaurant and proceeded to order for her, like she didn't have a mind of her own, she fumed silently. He was now talking about some weird modelling thing he had done. She was sat watching him desperately trying to remember who it was he reminded her of and then it hit her. Joey Donovan from "10 Things I Hate About You". He was totally that self-obsessed, in love with himself kind of guy. She had no idea what she had ever seen in this guy. Yeah, he was cute but he was an ass! As they finished their food and left, Richard drove them past Miley's house. She was confused so turned to him to question him about it.

"Erm ... Richard, my house was that way" she told him.

"Yeah I know, I'm taking us up to Bushers Point" he said and smiled at her with an extremely cheesy smile. Miley's already severely pissed off mood dropped a few degrees cooler.

"What?!" she exclaimed.

"Come on baby, you know you want this, you're just too shy to ask" he grinned at her with a waggle of his eyebrows. Miley quickly reined in her notorious temper before she lashed out at him whilst he was driving and killed them both.

"Richard, I suggest you take me home right now, this date is over" she stated quite calmly.

"But the night is ..." he started to whine before he was cut off.

"Now Richard!" she said forcefully, "If you don't wanna take me home, then pull over and I'll walk all the damn way myself" she said firmly. He frowned for the first time that evening and abruptly turned the car around leaving skid marks on the road.

"Fine!" he snapped, "Don't know why I wasted my time on you anyway and I took you to the best place in town" he muttered and pulled up outside her house with a screech of tires. Miley opened the door and turned to face him.

"Richard, you think way too much of yourself, and you seriously need to stop talking about yourself on dates!" she told him and started to get out of the car but turned back for one final say, "And a little meat never hurt anyone!" she told him before finally getting out of the car and slamming the door behind her. She had barely taken her hand off the door before Richard had sped off once again. As she stood in the cool air of the night, she looked towards her house and could feel herself calm down a little, Lilly was in there. She smiled to herself and walked inside, only to be greeted by a piercing scream which caused her blood to run cold.

"Lilly ..." she whispered to herself and took off running up the stairs to their room and burst inside. Her dad, Jackson and Oliver were all stood around Lilly's bed as they helplessly watched Lilly thrash on the bed in the throes of a nightmare. They all quickly turned to her as she burst in and in unison they all sighed in relief.

"Why are you doing anything?" she frowned as she threw her purse and jacket on the chair.

"We tried bud, but she wouldn't calm down or wake up, we've tried everything short of throwin' ice cold water on her" Robbie Ray explained as he watched his daughter approach the bed. Miley didn't respond to this but quickly lay down next to Lilly and pulled her to her as best she could considering Lilly's thrashing.

"Lil, I'm here" Miley said softly into Lilly's ear. The effect was instantaneous. Lilly stopped and melted into Miley's embrace. Her breathing evened back out and she threw her arms over Miley in her sleep. After a few minutes of blissful silence, Miley turned to look back at the three men in their bedroom and fixed her gaze on Oliver. "What happened Oliver?" she asked in a dangerous tone of voice.

"She fell asleep during the movie, near the end. Next thing I know, she's tossing and turning in her sleep and then she starts screaming. I tried to wake her up but it didn't work" he said hopelessly.

"Why didn't one of you call me?" she questioned, angrily.

"We tried" Jackson chimed in holding up the phone in his hand to prove his point, "But it said your phone was switched off". Any further discussion was halted by Lilly's sleepy voice.

"Miles ... you're home" Lilly smiled with her eyes still shut.

"Yeah Lils, I'm home" Miley responded, smiling as well.

"Well, I think we should give the girls some time to themselves" Robbie Ray suggested and started heading for the door, "Night girls, don't you stay up too late, ya hear?"

"Yes daddy" Miley agreed. Jackson and Oliver also started to head for the door but Oliver stopped on his way to give them a joint hug and whispered goodnight to them both and then they were alone again. Lilly spoke first.

"I had another nightmare slash screaming fit, didn't I?" she asked.

"How did you know?" Miley wondered aloud

"You mean other than having all of you guys in here when I woke up?" Lilly giggled, "... honestly, it was my dream"

"What happened in your dream?" Miley asked softly. Lilly paused for a second before continuing.

"I was back in the car, watching my parents ... well it wasn't pleasant, and I was watching it over and over again, but then you were there. It was like I was drowning and you saved me" Lilly smiled gently before whispering, "Then I woke up to you"

Miley couldn't speak, for a moment she was literally rendered speechless by Lilly's confession. She looked Lilly in the eyes, searching for something. She suddenly gasped, she knew this feeling because there was no way she could ever mistake it for anything else. From the descriptions her dad and mom had always given ... this was love. She was completely, head over heels, gut clenching, heart wrenchingly in love with Lilly. It wasn't just a crush. With this realisation she suddenly felt the freest she had in a long while. It was like coming up for air, but then reality hit her in the same way reality always did. Lilly was still going through a hard time and yes, she did have feelings for Miley but should she really be getting into any kind of relationship right now? She had to do what was best for Lilly. What was best for Lilly? She suddenly felt about two feet tall. The only person who really knew what was best for Lilly was Lilly. As much as Miley wanted to do what was best for her, it wasn't her decision. She finally found her voice.

"Let's get ready for bed Lils" she smiled shakily. She quickly got changed and returned to the bedroom where Lilly had also changed and moved to Miley's bed. She was staring into space as Miley walked back into the room and was jolted from her thoughtfulness as Miley lay down next to her. Miley switched off the light and they turned to face each other in the dark. There were several minutes of silence, as there had been all day. This time it was Lilly who broke the silence.

"So how was your date?" she asked tightly. Miley groaned in exasperation.

"It was the worst date ever and I'm talkin' worse than Derek the Delightful who was terrified of scary films" she rolled her eyes. Lilly's heart leapt, Miley wasn't going anywhere.

"Oh ..." she started, "I'm sorry about that, I know you really liked him"

"Not really" Miley said and then she made the decision. She was going to tell Lilly, consequences be damned. "Lilly, I think I should tell you something ..."

A.N. Ok so yes I'm being a bad writer again and cliffhangering my chapter ending but I'm gonna go start chapter nine right this very second whilst the story is flowing and I hope to have that one out sooner than this one took :D I hope the length of the chapter helped a little though :D Anyways pleaseeee review thanx Nicki xoxo


	9. Chapter 9 Coming Clean

A.N. The moment has arrived Woo Hoo lol :D

Chapter Nine – Coming Clean

As Miley trailed off her sentence, unsure of how to continue but Lilly decided she knew what she was going to say so she continued her sentence for her.

"... You hated the date but you're gonna go back out with him anyway" Lilly sighed, feeling defeated. She turned her gaze to the ceiling, knowing that she didn't want to see Miley as she was crushed with only a single word.

"What? No!" Miley exclaimed. Lilly's eyebrows furrowed in confusion and she quickly turned to look back at Miley.

"Well what else could you possibly have to tell me that you haven't already?" she asked. Miley didn't answer straight away; she just stared at Lilly, taking her in. Despite the confusion she was feeling, Lilly let Miley stare at her until she eventually had to ask again, "Miley? What's going on?"

"The other day ... when you told me how you felt, I ... I ... well I left something out" Miley stutteringly started and then stopped as she looked at Lilly in the darkness.

"Ok Miles, you're starting to scare me a little" Lilly admitted.

Miley took a deep breath and finally let out the truth she had been holding in, "I love you too, Lilly" she whispered. For a few seconds Miley's confession didn't register with Lilly but when it did her eyes widened in shock. She felt like one of those cartoon dogs whose jaws drop and tongue rolls out whilst their eyes bugged.

"You ... you ... you ... really?" Lilly eventually asked. Miley couldn't help but smile at Lilly's reaction.

"Really" she told her, "I'm so sorry I didn't tell you when you told me. I wanted to, I really did, but I felt really bad just blowing Richard off like that. It wasn't his fault and I had ..." Miley's rant was cut short when Lilly's lips met hers in a short, soft kiss. "Wow if I had known that all I had to do was ramble to get one of those I'd have ..." Miley started but was again cut off by Lilly's lips meeting hers, this time in a more passionate kiss that lasted much longer, which she gladly returned. After several moments of this Miley leaned against Lilly, pinning her to bed beneath her before she broke the kiss again. She smiled down at the sight beneath her, Lilly was grinning up at her as if one thousand Christmases and Birthdays had come at once. She reached forward and gently pushed Lilly's hair behind her ear. "I'm sorry" Miley eventually said, quietly.

"Shh" Lilly responded, slightly shaking her head and snaking a hand to cup Miley's cheek, "I understand why you did it and I wouldn't have you any other way" Miley's smile grew.

"It was worth it ... to be able to kiss you the way I want to kiss you" Miley whispered and leaned forward to kiss Lilly deeply. Lilly was momentarily caught off guard at the depth of feelings she could feel rolling off Miley but as Miley's hand rested on her waist, just under her t-shirt, all thought fled as she gasped into Miley's mouth and responded with equal enthusiasm. Miley started to stroke Lilly's stomach with her thumb leaving goose bumps in its wake. The kissing gradually slowed down and they parted enough for Miley to look back down Lilly.

"I was afraid Oliver would say something before I got the courage to" she admitted.

"You told Oliver?" Lilly asked with a crooked smile.

"No" Miley shook her head, "He just seemed to ... know, I guess he's not quite the donut we think he is"

"Oh I wouldn't say that" Lilly grinned evilly, "I just think he's been in his mom's magazines again" They both burst out laughing at this, Miley buried her face in Lilly's shoulder to muffle her laughing. When they got themselves back under control, Lilly took a deep breath before she asked the question that she really wanted the answer to. "So, what does ... _this_ mean?" she asked. Miley pushed herself back to her elbows to look down at her again.

"What do you mean?" she asked confused, her heart started to sink; maybe Lilly didn't want her after all.

"I mean ... I love you, you love me, so what does that ... I mean ... are we friends? Friends with benefits? Are we more than that ..." she trailed off as Miley smiled slowly and lay back down, curling into Lilly's side and throwing her right leg casually over Lilly's.

"Lilly, will you be my girlfriend?" she asked, feeling a little shy despite the activities of a few minutes earlier.

"Are you sure that's what you want? I mean I didn't want to ...." She started.

"Lilly, I want to be with you" Miley cut in. Lilly felt tears of happiness well in her eyes and pulled Miley's face up to hers for a short sweet kiss.

"Yes" she smiled, "I want to be your girlfriend" They smiled and sat in comfortable silence, simply holding each other for a few minutes until Lilly spoke again, "I'm not ready for people to know though" she whispered softly, "I can't have ... not so soon after ... please understand?" she begged. Miley squeezed her waist with her arm and both her legs with her right leg gently in understanding.

"I do, we're gonna do this at your pace Lil" she whispered, "Plus there's the whole 'what would dad do?' issue. I mean he'd probably move us into separate rooms and with your nightmares ..." Miley trailed off.

"Oliver's gonna know the minute he see's us together" Lilly commented and gently started to play with Miley's hair, running her fingers from her scalp and trailing down before starting again.

"Yeah ..." Miley trailed off, she could feel herself being lured into sleep but she looked at Lilly first through sleepy eyes, "I don't care about Oliver knowing, I just need you" she smiled into her neck. Lilly felt this and tried to pull Miley closer still, which was difficult considering how close they already were.

"Me too Miles," she whispered as she felt Miley's breathing even out, indicating she was asleep, "Me too"

A.N. Ok so this is shorter than I had anticipated. I had originally seen another day at school where they were on edge with each other and Miley keep trying to tell her but I figured I'd already put them through enough :D so this is what came out instead. Hope you enjoyed and please review, thanks, Nicki xoxo


	10. Chapter 10 Sneaking Around

A.N. Sorry this took so long but here it is :D Special thanks to My Personal Rose for giving me the thumbs up on this chap :D

Chapter Ten – Sneaking Around

When Lilly woke up the next morning, she blinked sleepily as she looked at the clock on the night stand. It read 10:02. She frowned slightly, the alarm should have gone off by now because Miley had a concert that night, so she rolled over to reach for Miley to find the bed empty. She quickly sat up and looked around the room and noticed the door to the bathroom was open so she wasn't in there.

"Miley?" she called but before she could get up and walk over to the closet to check in there, the bedroom door opened and Miley came walking in. She was carrying a tray and she smiled widely as she saw Lilly awake.

"Mornin' beautiful" she said happily and shut the door with her foot before making her way over to sit on the edge of the bed, next to Lilly, "Breakfast?" she asked as she placed the tray on Lilly's knee. Lilly steadied the tray and looked down at the breakfast Miley had brought up for her. She had made chocolate chip pancakes with maple syrup, her absolute favourite and also had a cup of orange and tea on there.

"You made me breakfast?" Lilly asked and looked up to smile back at Miley.

"Of course" Miley answered, "Well ... it's one of the things I can do for you until we tell people about us without it being weird and since you burn _everything..._" Miley smirked and trailed off. Lilly rolled her eyes.

"I do not burn everything" she replied, indignantly.

"Lil hun, you could burn water" Miley deadpanned.

"Did you just call me hun?" Lilly grinned as Miley blushed slightly.

"Yeah ... get used to it" she smiled, "I'm gonna be calling you that and more now, just because I can"

"Oh yeah?" Lilly asked, raising her eyebrows, "Like what exactly?"

"Oh like, sweetie" she supplied and placed a short kiss on Lilly's lips, "Or snuggums" another kiss, "or my little chocolate chip" she giggled and placed one last kiss on her lips.

"Oh no! I draw the line at little chocolate chip" Lilly fake grimaced, "Please don't ever call me that"

Miley laughed and moved so she was sat next to Lilly on the bed. "I can't promise anything" she taunted and grabbed the cup of tea from the tray and took a sip. Lilly looked from the tray to the girl sat beside her and smiled.

"I love you Miley Ray Stewart" she said softly.

"I love you too Lils" Miley grinned back.

"You want some of the pancakes?" Lilly asked as she grabbed the knife and fork.

"Nope" Miley shook her head, "These are just for you".

After Lilly finished her breakfast, they put the tray to one side and lay in each others embrace as they talked more about what they were going to do.

"Is Oliver coming to the concert tonight?" Lilly asked as she played with Miley's hair, loving how relaxed she could make Miley just by touching her. Miley sighed in contentment as she turned slightly and faced Lilly.

"He said he was" she told her, "I told him the limo was leaving at six anyway so I'll call him later and check"

"Later?" Lilly questioned.

"Yeah" Miley blushed a little before continuing, "I don't want to move" she admitted softly causing Lilly to giggle a little. There were several minutes pause until Miley spoke again, "Do you want to tell Oliver?" she asked.

"Do you?" Lilly countered.

"I'm not sure, I mean he probably already knows ... or think he knows anyways" Lilly wondered.

"I'd guess he does know that we were going to tell each other ... he's got annoyingly insightful recently" Miley added.

"Ok ... so how about we keep it secret unless he says he knows?" Lilly asked and leaned more into Miley's embrace.

"Yeah I think that's the best plan" Miley smiled before placing a soft kiss on her lips and then her phone rang. "Hello?" she answered.

"_Hey Miley, it's Oliver"_

"Hey" Miley smiled, "You ok?"

"_Yeah I'm good, just checking it's still ok I come tonight?"_

"Of course, limo's picking us up at six, like I told you before" she grinned.

"_Ok, see ya later, bye"_ he said and ended the call. Miley threw her phone back onto the night stand and pulled Lilly back into her embrace.

"Oliver will meet us later" she told her.

"So ... say nothing unless he does?" Lilly asked.

"Yeah" Miley smiled, before closing her eyes and pulling Lilly closer, "I want to keep you to myself for as long as possible"

-LILEY-

The limo drive to the concert was very quiet. Miley and Lilly were contemplating how best to keep their secret from Oliver whilst Oliver was covertly watching their interaction. Whilst most people wouldn't be able to distinguish the majority of their current behaviours from their old ones, Oliver spent a lot of his time around these two girls and as they both loved to talk, it meant that he often spent his time listening to them and watching how they were together. Today he was noticing things like how they were sitting a little closer than normal, that their legs were crossed towards each other, that they were holding hands with their fingers intertwined and that Lilly's thumb was subconsciously rubbing the back of Miley's hand. He smirked to himself as he looked out of the window. He knew that they wouldn't tell him that they were together, that he would have to nosey a little more to get the scoop. He turned to fully face them and smiled as Miley faced him.

"Sooo" he drew out, "Anything that you'd ... like to share guys?" he asked and looked pointedly at their joint hands. Miley and Lilly both looked confused and followed his gaze to their hands. When they realised what he was looking at they quickly let go of each other's hands and practically jumped to opposite sides of the limo seat at which point Oliver burst out laughing. "Come on guys, it's so obvious"

"Pfft ... I have n-no idea w-what you're talking about" Lilly waved off.

"Guys!" Oliver said. Miley looked at Lilly and raised an eyebrow. They looked at each other for a few seconds until Lilly sighed and nodded.

"Ok Oliver ... we are together but we don't want people to know yet ... we're not ready" Miley explained.

"Guys, I get it and I'm happy you told me" he smiled, "And if you ever want to talk about anything including ... make out scenarios, then I'm totally available" he smirked.

"Oliver!" Miley and Lilly exclaimed at once.

"I'm kidding!" He held his hands up, "Well mostly" he winked. They all laughed at this.

"So are you ok with this?" Miley asked.

"Of course! As I've said before ... you two are my best girl buds ever"

Their talk was cut short by the limo arriving at the concert venue. They had arrived relatively early to today's concert so they managed to avoid the usual crush and mad rush for Hannah photo's and autograph's. When they made it to the dressing room, Oliver and Lilly went straight for the food table causing Miley to roll her eyes as she shrugged out of her jacket and hung it up.

"I swear sometimes I think that you two are twins" Miley sighed.

"Huh?" Oliver asked through a mouthful of hotdog, causing Miley to giggle and Lilly to roll her eyes. She walked over to Miley and wrapped her arms around her middle.

"Take it back" she grinned.

"Nope" she smirked.

"Ok then ... you asked for it" she grinned before she moved her hands to start tickling Miley who shrieked and tried to jump away but Lilly was too quick for her and they fell in a heap on the sofa. "You gonna take it back?" Lilly giggled.

"NO!" Miley shrieked again, trying to struggle out of Lilly's grip for a few seconds before finally shouting, "Ok, ok, I take it back!" Lilly stopped tickling and leaned closer to her, bringing one hand up to brush the blonde wig from her girlfriends eyes.

"I love you" she whispered softly causing Miley to smile widely.

"I love you too" Miley whispered back. Lilly pressed her lips to Miley's smiling as she felt her kiss her back. Lilly slowed the kiss and gently broke it to look at Miley. They were looking into each other's eyes as there was a sudden knock at the door. Lilly barely had chance to roll off Miley before the door opened and Tracey stalked inside.

"Hannah, darl ... What are you doing?" she asked crinkling her nose in disgust as she saw how close Hannah and Lola were.

"We fell" Miley said simply and stood up quickly, offering her hand to help Lilly up. After she did she turned to Tracey, "What's up Trace?" she smiled.

"Just wanted to say Hi" she said in her usually nasal voice, if she had suspected anything from their closeness, she obviously wasn't saying. She looked at Lilly at bit disgusted that she was so close before she finally spoke.

"Hannah ... you could do _so _much better" she said in monotone.

"There is no one better than Lola" Miley stated firmly, Tracey laughed this off and the conversation was ended quite quickly by the stagehand asking Miley to come and do sound check. Lilly and Oliver spent the rest of the evening talking and then watching Miley from the side of the stage as Lilly had insisted. Miley noticed her friend and her girlfriend stood there, cheering her on and it made her dance a little faster than before, with a spring in her step. After she had finished her songs, she knew right away that she wasn't going to do any encores, she thanked her fans, yelled goodnight and ran towards Lilly who she hugged tightly and then quickly released her before hugging Oliver even faster. The next hour was a blur and before she knew it, they were back at home and getting ready for bed. They were finally lying down, with Lilly resting her head on Miley's chest before they spoke.

"This is just gonna get harder to hide isn't it" Lilly whispered. Miley paused before she spoke as well.

"I'm not sure I want to hide it, but yeah, it's gonna get harder, just wait 'til Monday" Miley whispered. Lilly nodded but didn't speak as they fell into and easy sleep.

-LILEY-

Monday rolled round faster than either girl wanted and before they knew it they were on their way into school. They walked over to their lockers as usual and started getting their books out for the day when Amber and Ashley suddenly appeared.

"Look who it is Ash, the Hillbilly and the Homeless" Amber taunted cruelly. Miley saw red at this comment and slammed her locker shut, noting with satisfaction that Amber and Ashley both jumped at the action.

"Right! Listen up Tweedle dumb and tweedle dumber" she started, moving to stand between Lilly and Amber and Ashley, "That has got to be one of the cruellest things I have ever heard either of you two say and it's NOT fair. If I find out that you've come near Lilly again I guarantee that you'll find out just how _hillbilly_ I can be" she threatened, pointing her finger into Amber shoulder. Both girls looked speechless and Lilly took full advantage of this and dragged Miley into a nearby empty classroom.

"What was that, Miles?" she asked. Miley was pacing angrily in front of Lilly before she stopped and took a deep breath.

"I'm sorry Lils, it's just ... that wasn't mean or even dumb, it was plain cruel and I'm _not_ gonna let them speak to you like that" Miley explained and then looked at Lilly, who was smiling softly at Miley.

"You are my new protector" she told her. Miley walked over to Lilly and wrapped her arms around Lilly's waist, pulling her closer to her and leaned to whisper in her ear.

"I always have been and you're mine" she pulled back slightly to look at Lilly, who decided that the hug wasn't nearly enough and kissed her. She had only meant it to last a few seconds but Miley groaned and deepened the kiss so Lilly's arms wrapped themselves around Miley's neck of their own accord. The kiss quickly turned desperate and Miley walked Lilly backwards until she hit the wall at which point she leant into Lilly, kissing her more passionately still. After a few minutes of each girl battling for dominance, Lilly tired to speak.

"Miles ..." she gasped as Miley attacked her neck with her lips, "We should ... should ... stop, we should ... stop"

"Don't want to" Miley mumbled before claiming Lilly's lips again. The next few things happened so suddenly that Miley and Lilly didn't know what hit them. First the warning bell rang, surprising both girls enough to cause them to jump apart and then the door to the classroom opened, causing Miley to jump around in surprise and in doing so she caught her foot on the leg of the teachers table and went flying into the bin as the class started to walk inside.

"Miley!" Lilly exclaimed and rushed to her side. Miley flailed around for a second or two until she realised that she was well and truly stuck. She looked at Lilly, trying to ignore the stares of their classmates who were wondering what the heck was going on.

"A little help here!" she almost shouted. Lilly quickly helped Miley out of the bin and brushed off some dust that had appeared on her sleeve before Amber showed up.

"Nice form Stewart, a little shaky on the dismount though" she smirked before laughing and walking back to her desk. Miley rolled her eyes and smiled at Lilly before they walked over and took their seats. A few minutes into the class starting, Lilly slipped Miley a note which she quickly opened. It read:

_This will be harder than we thought_

Miley smiled softly at Lilly and nodded. It really would.

A.N. So that's chap 10, please review, they really do mean the world to me :D thanks Nicki xoxo


	11. Chapter 11 Well That Didn't Last Long

A.N. Ok so another inexcusably long wait for this chapter ... I'm really really sorry :S ... anyways please enjoy :D

Chapter Eleven – Well That Didn't Last Long

Lilly froze as she entered the bedroom and then a smile crept its way onto her face. She and Miley had been dating for a month now and had managed to keep it completely secret from everyone except Oliver. As she had walked into their room, after she had spent the afternoon at soccer practice, she had noticed the softer lighting than normal and Miley sat on the bed facing her. Miley would usually wait for her during her training session but she had said she had some stuff to do so she'd meet her at home, which she had found strange but shrugged it off. As she looked away from Miley and around the room, she also noticed the bowl of popcorn and other treats sat on the bedside table next to her favourite drink. This was obviously what the extra stuff she had to do was.

"What's going on Miles?" she asked, closing the door behind her and stepped closer to her girlfriend, who stood up to meet her and placed a soft kiss on her lips. Miley smiled as she pulled away and took Lilly's jacket from her.

"It's our one month anniversary for us together as a couple" she explained, "I know we're getting a little old for our friendship weekiversary's now, so I figured we could celebrate this instead" she looked up shyly at Lilly who was grinning from ear to ear.

"What did I do to deserve you?" she asked wonderingly as Miley lead her over to the bed.

"Oh something fantastic, no doubt" She giggled, "Right now sit right there, I've got your favourite snacks and drinks and your favourite movie ready to go, also daddy and Jackson have gone on one of their father/son bonding fishing trips so we have the place to ourselves"

Lilly instantly smiled a devilish smile towards Miley, who blushed prettily and quickly started to fuss with putting the DVD on as Lilly whispered to herself, "Lilly likey". She sat down, toed off her shoes and lay down with her back to the head board. She watched as Miley got the DVD going and then crawled over the bed towards her. It was completely innocent, Miley was simply wanting to get to sit next to Lilly but seeing the object of her desire crawl towards her like that caused Lilly's mouth to turn dry.

"Miles?" she croaked as Miley settled down next to her and took her hand, completely unaware of the affect she had been having on her girlfriend.

"Hmm?" she asked as she turned to face Lilly but whatever else might have been said was cut short by Lilly pressing her lips against Miley's in a fiery kiss that would set the pace for the evening. Miley groaned into the kiss and gasped as Lilly's tongue made its way into Miley's mouth. Miley's passion was kicked up a notch when Lilly, who was fuelled by Miley's groan, quickly straddled her hips. Lilly left Miley's lips and started a trail of kisses down her jaw and onto her neck, taking her time to gently caress the soft skin over her pulse point with her lips. She suddenly felt Miley's hand underneath her t-shirt and managed to control herself enough to slightly pull away.

"Wait..." she gasped, brought her hand up to cup Miley's cheek and fought to get her breathing back under control, "Are you sure?" she whispered. Miley smiled brightly and before Lilly could say another word, Miley had rolled them over so she was resting between Lilly's legs.

"Never been more sure of anything" she whispered back before placing a soft kiss on her lips.

The kiss didn't stay soft for long.

-LILEY-

The next morning saw Lilly wake up first. She was spooned up against Miley's back, enjoying the warmth they were sharing and then smirked as she started to kiss along Miley's neck to her shoulder and then back again. After a few seconds of this treatment, she felt Miley start to stir in her arms; she smiled against her skin and continued with what she was doing, until she finally heard Miley speak.

"Mmmm." Miley smiled, "Good morning.'" she continued as she rolled over to face Lilly and kissed her deeply. Both girls were so into each other that they didn't hear the two knocks on the door nor the door opening a few seconds later, however they did hear what happened next.

"What's going on in here?" Robbie Ray asked in a state of shock as he took in what he was seeing. Miley quickly sat up using the quilt to cover herself and trying to protect Lilly from any reaction that her dad might have.

"Dad ... I can explain ..." Miley started to say but her dad cut her off before she could get very far.

"Good, because I'd love to hear the explanation for this." He said, with an unreadable expression. Miley gulped but before she could say a word she felt Lilly's hand slip into hers, she glanced back at her girlfriend and saw the grim but hopeful expression she wore and she felt her heart skip a beat before she turned back to face her father.

"Dad, I love Lilly, we love each other, I'm sorry we didn't tell you but Lilly's been having nightmares when I don't hold her when we sleep. We were afraid you wouldn't let us ... you've seen how she gets." Miley said, "Please daddy, please say something?" She pleaded. There was silence for several seconds as Robbie Ray processed what he had seen and been told.

"I can't believe you didn't tell me." He finally said, still with an unreadable expression.

"Please Mr S. I promise that we were going to tell you but I was being selfish ... I couldn't lose Miley in the way I needed her." She admitted softly.

"So you both sneak around behind my back, sleeping together." He stated evenly.

"No!" Lilly exclaimed.

"No, daddy!" Miley exclaimed at the same time, "That ... that only happened last night ... we promise." Miley said, squeezing Lilly's hand for support.

"You promise?" He asked sternly.

"Yes dad, I promise on mom's grave." Miley said seriously and Lilly nodded. Robbie Ray finally smiled a soft smile.

"Girls, I'm not really angry, I'm just disappointed you didn't come and tell me you were together." He told them as he sat on the bed next to them and took Miley's and Lilly's free hands, "Now get dressed and I guess we'll have to talk some more." He smiled brightly which caused smiles to appear on Miley's and Lilly's faces.

After an hour long discussion with Robbie Ray and Jackson (whom Robbie Ray felt that it was important that he also knew what was going on and they agreed) they came up with a list of ground rules that they could all live with. Jackson's only rule was he didn't want to see his little sister making out with anyone, other than that he was cool. Robbie Ray had wanted to split them into separate rooms but Miley and Lilly quickly vetoed that idea.

"Daddy, please ... we promise that we won't do anything but ..." Miley started to protest but Robbie Ray quickly interrupted.

"That's ok Miles, you might be a grown up now that you're eighteen but you'll always be my little girl so please don't continue with that sentence." He asked. Miley and Lilly smiled at each other and there was a pause while Robbie Ray watched them looking at each other, "Ok, you can stay in the room together BUT I want to door open all the time when you're in there together, ok?" He said sternly.

"Yes dad." Miley smiled as Lilly nodded. Robbie Ray turned to Lilly.

"You take care of each other." He said to her with a nod of his head. Lilly didn't answer verbally, that wasn't a question it was more of a statement so Lilly knew that a nod was sufficient. "Ok well I guess that's everything" Robbie Ray finished as he stood from his chair. He smiled down at the two young women, "Congratulations buds." He said and bent down to pull them both into a hug. A few seconds later he straightened and slapped his hands together. "Who wants breakfast?" He asked jovially.

The rest of the weekend ran by way too fast for either girls liking. Now that Robbie Ray and Jackson knew, they could hold hands and sneak the odd kiss (when Jackson wasn't looking) around the house. They just felt much happier but when they woke up Monday morning, they knew it would just be another day of hiding how they truly felt. Miley was willing to do whatever Lilly wanted and Lilly still wasn't sure what she could deal with from the people from school. Sometimes she just wanted to hide and be invisible but the majority of the time she just wanted to scream form the rooftops that she was in love with the greatest woman in the world. Walking into school that day felt different. Everywhere they went people were staring at them and each of them thought they were being paranoid about what it meant. It all became clear as they reached their lockers and started to get their books ready for the day. Amber and Ashley appeared on left hand side and started to talk before either Miley or Lilly had acknowledged them.

"So, _every_one has been talking about you Stewart." Amber started, already smirking.

"Oh really?" Miley sighed as she reached out her chem book from the back of her locker.

"Yeah," Ashley smirked from her usual place besides Amber. Miley rolled her eyes at Lilly, who smirked too, before closing her locker and turning to face the girls.

"And what could _every_one possibly have to say about me?" she asked and then instantly wished she hadn't as she saw the evil look appear on Amber's face. All she knew is that whatever Amber was about to say would not be good.

"Just that you're the parent killer, you got rid of your mom, then losercotts parents, lucky you have one parent left, Oken's folk's must be next on your list." She sneered. Miley's world crumbled down around her. Did she really just say that? Did that really just happen? She didn't pause to listen to what came next, she didn't wait for Lilly, and she just started to steadily walk away from them and straight into the girl's toilets. She walked over to the mirror and stared at her reflection. Is that what Lilly thought? That she was some kind of bad luck charm that had caused her to lose her parents? Was she? She had lost her mom and she was best friends and now girlfriend of a girl that had lost both parents. She gripped the sink tightly as the door behind her banged open.

"Miley" Lilly sighed in relief as she saw the girl stood there. She reached for Miley, trying to comfort her, trying to ease her pain but only able to do so much. Miley's tears started to fall as she felt the closeness of her girlfriend and her sobs started to pour from her.

"I'm sorry, so sorry." She cried softly. Lilly sighed and she pulled Miley close and rubbed her back as soothingly as she could. She gently placed a kiss on Miley's neck and whispered into her ear.

"Ignore them ... just ignore them" she whispered.

"Is it my fault?" Miley hiccoughed as she wrapped her own arms around Lilly, desperately seeking the comfort she needed.

"No!" Lilly vehemently cried, "Amber and Ashley are full of crap! You know that. Don't let them do this to you." She begged, as she cupped Miley's face in her hand and pulled her gaze up to meet hers, "Promise me?" She asked. Miley managed a weak smile before she responded.

"Ok." She whispered, "I have to do something about those two."

"We will." Lilly smiled.

"We will?" Miley asked, a little surprised. "What?" she asked smiling a little.

"I intend to fight like a girl. I'll let them kill each other" she smirked. Miley instantly felt the tiniest bit sorry for Amber and Ashley but she quickly thought back to her reaction over their comment and sobered slightly before talking again.

"I'm sorry ... you know that I'm overly sensitive about stuff to do with my mom." She whispered.

"I know, I am too." Lilly smiled and placed a soft kiss on Miley's lips. Miley instantly forgot about everything. She forgot they were in school. She forgot that nobody knew about them. She forgot that Lilly had said that she wasn't ready for people to know. All she knew in that exact moment was that she loved Lilly and that she wanted to show her exactly how much. She rested her hand on Lilly's waist and as she allowed her tongue entrance to her mouth, her hand found its way under her top. Lilly groaned at the sensation but both girls were rudely interrupted from their make out session by a loud, obnoxious voice coming from the door.

"Oh. My. God!" Amber yelled, "I knew it!"

A.N. I knew this chapter would be a cliffhanger all along so I hope nobody throws any rotten fruit or veg at me :S anyways I think the next chapter will be the last and then an epilogue. So pleaseeeee review, thanks guys, Nicki xoxo


	12. Chapter 12 Happy Ending?

A.N. So this is my last chapter for this story, there will be an epilogue, but see how much quicker I got this chap out after the cliff-hanger :P

Chapter Twelve – Happy Ending?

Miley and Lilly quickly separated and spun around in dismay to face Amber. She stood completely still as she stared at the two girls. After her outburst from a few seconds before, she now appeared scandalised and stood with her back to the door. Miley wasn't sure whether this was to keep Miley and Lilly trapped inside or to give her the best escape route.

"Amber ..." Lilly started softly, but Miley placed her hand on Lilly' shoulder and stepped forward first. The fact that Amber knew was her fault and she would deflect all the bad away from Lilly if she could, she knew that doing that was most likely impossible but she tried anyway.

"Amber ..." she also started, but this time she was cut off by Amber herself.

"You too have always been losers but I never figured you'd be that desperate that the only people who would date you are each other" she sneered. Miley glanced at Lilly, whose hand had found its way, unnoticed by Amber; to rest at the bottom of Miley's back in a silent show of support. Amber's face suddenly changed from sneering to scheming. "You two are keeping this a secret aren't you?" she smirked.

"We've been trying to, yeah" Miley said, a touch of impatience entering her voice. Why else did she think that they hadn't been openly showing affection and that they were kissing in an empty bathroom? Miley struggled not to roll her eyes, she knew that doing so would not be helpful.

"So you'd pretty much do anything to keep this a secret?" she asked, still smirking.

"Yes" Miley said confidently, "I will do anything to protect Lilly, she's not ready to make this public so soon" she continued, steadily meeting Amber's watchful gaze. There was silence for another few seconds whilst Amber took this in. The sly smile that spread over Amber's face a few seconds later made Miley's stomach drop and Lilly to dread the worst.

"If you want me to keep this secret Stewart, you have to admit you're gay in front of the whole school at lunch and say you're in love with me so I can humiliate the hell out of you and you can't leave until I tell you to go" she grinned. She couldn't believe how great this was, she finally got to humiliate Miley Ray 'Hillbilly' Stewart in front of the whole school and have total control whilst she did it. What she didn't count on was Lilly's reaction.

"Hell no!" Lilly burst out, causing both Miley and Amber to turn to face her in surprise, "No way Miley, I won't let you do it" she shook her head to stress this.

"But Lils ..." Miley started.

"I will tell everyone" Amber threatened, "Everyone will know about you two"

Lilly didn't hesitate. She took Miley's hand in hers and walked them both towards the door. There was a slight look of surprise on Amber's face as Lilly walked through the door into the corridor. She followed them and stood by the door. Lilly stopped right in the middle of the crowded corridor and turned to face Miley. She placed her hand on Miley's cheek and smiled at her confused slightly panicked expression.

"It's ok" she whispered, "I'm ready, I love you and I don't care who knows anymore" she smiled causing Miley to smile widely too. Lilly gently pulled Miley towards her and soundly kissed her right there. As usual, Miley couldn't help but respond and as such neither girl recognised the sudden silence that fell over the people surrounding them. When their kiss ended and they gently pulled away from each other. "I love you" Lilly whispered.

"I love you too" Miley whispered back. Miley glanced to her right and noticed the dumbstruck expressions on their fellow students. She grinned at Lilly and then spoke softly, so only Lilly could hear. "I think we have an audience"

"I was betting on that" Lilly grinned back, and it was then that Miley realised it had been her plan all along and she suddenly felt a little silly at not figuring it out sooner. They took each other's hands and started towards their first class, effectively ignoring the stares they were getting. They weren't directly confronted on their relationship until second period as they were lining up to enter. Ashley came up to them and smirked.

"So you lesbo's decided to come out" she asked. Miley subtlety winked at Lilly before she spoke.

"Yeah, well Amber told us how well it turned out for her to confess her love to her best friend, so we decided to go for it" she shrugged with a blank face. Ashley looked horrified.

"But ... I-I'm her best f-friend" she stuttered.

"Yeah, and we owe so much to you" Lilly said, catching on. Ashley's face was ash white as Miley and Lilly entered the classroom, trying not to laugh. As they sat down they noticed Ashley ignoring Amber as she came into the classroom late. Miley leaned close to Lilly.

"Ok, I think I enjoyed that way too much" she winked before sitting back in her seat as the teacher entered the room. The rest of the day passed quickly for both Miley and Lilly, then at the end of the day, as they were leaving the building to walk home, they saw Amber and Ashley having an argument by their lockers.

"... but you told them!" Ashley said heatedly. Amber slammed her locker shut, before turning on Ashley.

"Ash, they're playing with you!" she hissed, "Like I would ever be like _them_ ... just COME ON!" she yelled the last bit.

Miley looked at Lilly and they quickly exited the building and they started to walk home. Each staying quiet for a few minutes until Lilly spoke.

"Ok, I know we said that we would let them take each other apart and it was kinda fun but I don't want them to hate each other and not be friends anymore" Lilly said, "I mean, who else would be friends with them" she smirked.

"Good point" Miley sighed, "I'll tell them we were making it up tomorrow ... unless they've made up by then"

"I don't it ... they were pretty mad" Lilly said. Miley was unusually quiet for a few minutes. "Ok, what are you thinking in there?" Lilly asked.

"It's my fault" Miley sighed, "I let my anger over what Amber said about my mom takeover"

Lilly stopped them just short of the Stewart house, "Hey, it wasn't your fault, if Amber hadn't said anything you wouldn't have done anything"

"I know" she whispered, "But still..."

"But still nothing" Lilly smiled, "You're my personal hero, remember?"

Miley let the issue go, realising that both herself and Amber we're both at fault. Later that evening Lilly and Miley were watching a movie in their room, with the door open as agreed when they heard a knock at the door. They both looked up.

"Hey Oliver" Miley smiled as they both sat up, Lilly smiled at her oldest friend and Oliver entered the room.

"Hey" he smiled back, "So ... you girls put on quite a show today" he smiled

"Yeah we did" Miley said as she stared adoringly at Lilly who smiled back.

"Yeah" Lilly said as she smiled back.

"You didn't say it, but you were right Oliver, we should have been honest about how we felt from the start"

"Well, I'm right about so many things, it would make your head spin" he smirked before sitting down at the foot of the bed.

"So what brings you here, Oliver?" Miley asked as they both sat up. Lilly yawned and stretched as Oliver answered.

"I just came to check on you" he smiled.

"You w-wanna watch the r-rest of the m-movie with us?" Lilly asked.

"Yeah, don't mind if I do" he grinned and they all relaxed to watch the end of the movie.

-LILEY-

The next day, Miley and Lilly were stood by their lockers, happily talking about the upcoming day when they heard an argument just around the corner. Miley looked confused at Lilly, silently asking if she knew what was going on; Lilly shrugged to say that she didn't know what was happening either. They shut their lockers and quickly walked around the corner to a sight that neither girl thought they would ever see. Amber and Ashley were having a hair pulling, slapping and scratching fight.

"Get off me, you filthy dyke!" Ashley screeched.

"Take that back!" Amber yelled back as she pulled on Ashley's hair.

"No way" Ashley screamed. Miley jumped forward, after having got over here shock and tried to separate the two.

"Whoa! ... guys! ... break it up!" Miley grunted as she forcefully separated the two. She finally did so and held them apart with arms held wide, "Come on!" she said calmly, "What's goin' ON with you two?" she asked.

"YOU!" Amber yelled, her clothes slightly askew and the hair tangled, "You spread lies about me and then my best friend believes them, you're so low Stewart. I can't believe that you were making things up about me ..."

"Exactly!" Miley interrupted before dropping her voice, "It hurts when people make up rumours about you, doesn't it" she hissed. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath before turning to Ashley, "Ashley, she's not in love with you or any other woman ... well actually I'd say that she couldn't be in love with anyone, I'm not sure she's capable of love, I'm sorry for lying to you" Miley dropped her arms and shook her head slightly before finally walking over to Lilly and going to class.

"You ok?" Lilly asked as she slipped her hand into Miley's.

"Yes" she nodded, "I just HATE that I had to apologise to them after everything they have done to us" she sighed.

"Yeah but you always do the right thing, it's one of the things I love about you" Lilly smiled, causing Miley to smile too.

-LILEY-

Days after the Amber and Ashley bust up, Miley and Lilly were alone at home, comfortably watching a movie together. Miley was lay with her head on Lilly's chest, practically purring in contentment as Lilly was stroking her hair. She wrapped her arm around Lilly's waist and pulled her closer.

"Promise we'll always be this happy" Miley sighed.

"I promise" Lilly said as she kissed Miley's hairline. Yes, life would get hard and yes, things would get difficult but what both of them knew after the heartaches that had happened to them in recent times was that they could always count on each other.

The End

A.N. Ok so this is the end of the story itself, there's and epilogue to come, please review to let me know what you think :D thanks guys Nicki xoxo


	13. Epilogue 7 Years Later

A.N. Here's the epilogue guys :D

Chapter Thirteen – 7 Years Later ...

Twenty five year old Miley crept into the house, gently placing her bag at the front door. The house was dark which wasn't surprising as it was just after one o'clock in the morning. She closed the door and swiftly walked to the stairs before walking up them, deftly avoiding the creaking step. She walked down the long corridor and stopped halfway at the door that was slightly open, where there was a soft glow of light pouring into the corridor. She stepped into the room and smiled at the sight before her. Lilly was sat on the bed, leaning against the headboard with a bundle in her arms. Lilly was dozing but as Miley made her way to the bed and sat down next to her, she was jarred awake. She looked at Miley and smiled.

"Hey" she whispered, "What time is it?" she asked.

"A little after one" Miley whispered back.

"The session ran on way too long there Hun, you have to rest" Lilly admonished as quietly as she could. Miley had been working on her new album for months, she was due to wrap it up over two months ago but Miley just hadn't felt that the songs were right and as such had been working much longer hours to try and get the album wrapped up.

"I need to finish this" Miley sighed, "I need to finish this because I'm needed here"

"You'll always be needed here, but I need to have you _here _when you're home" Lilly smiled, "What's the problem with album?" she asked.

Miley sighed and lay down to rest her head on Lilly's shoulder before finally responding, "None of the songs ... feel right, I'm rerecording the vocals over and over, in different ways. I'm relaying the guitar and piano tracks all the time ... but they're just ... not right ... "she trailed off.

"I want you to take a week off" Lilly told her.

"Lils ..." Miley started to protest but Lilly interrupted.

"No, listen, please ... If you take some time off, clear your head, be where you want to be" Lilly smirked, "With us and then you'll be able to refocus ... once you're relaxed again"

"I am relaxed" Miley sulked; Lilly ignored this and pressed on.

"You don't record well when you're tense and distracted, I've known that since I was 15, please ... just take a week off" she begged. Miley remained quiet for several minutes, both women silently thinking until Miley finally spoke.

"Ok, I'll call Dave in the morning and take at least a week off, I promise" Miley moved to look Lilly in the eyes and leaned forward to place a chaste kiss on her lips. They were interrupted by a soft cry coming from the bundle in Lilly's arms.

"Looks like she knows her Momma is home" Lilly smiled and gently passed their daughter into Miley's arms. All at once, the tension is Miley vanished, replaced by a look of adoration as she gazed down at their month old daughter.

"I still can't get over how perfect she is" Miley whispered as she ran a finger down their daughter's face. They stood up and walked her into the next room and set her down in her crib. They stood watching her for a few moments before Lilly spoke again.

"I swear she looked right at me and smiled as I fed her before" she told Miley. They took one last look at their sleeping daughter and walked back into their bedroom. Miley was glad she was taking a week off; she didn't want to miss a thing in her daughter's life. They had named her Alyson after both Miley's and Lilly's mom's because they had shared it as their middle name. It had seemed fitting to name their child after two of the people they missed the most. Miley quickly changed into a tank top and pyjama bottoms and slipped into bed next to Lilly, spooning her from behind and taking her left hand in hers. She started clinking their wedding bands together in a way she loved to do. "What are you thinking about?" Lilly asked as she stroked Miley's arm.

"Just how lucky we are" Miley whispered and kissed her wife's neck, "I love you"

"I love you too, Miles" Lilly grinned and closed her eyes, safe in the embrace of the woman she loved.

A.N. Ok and that's the very, very end. I hope you all enjoyed the story, I know I enjoyed writing it :D This has been my first story to reach 100 reviews so thanks so much.

I'd like to give special thanks to My Personal Rose, HannahLillyJBfan, MaltaGozo, Truscott and Feeling the Love for the unwavering support during this story and putting up with my rantings about it lol and to croaker001 for reviewing every chapter. Thanks to all my reviewers, in no particular order: becca301x, rain1657, everwood123, Liley-Twilight-Lover, caligrl479, oh one, JBPones, Everhart13, jfjoa, DONTEVENTHINKABOUTIT, Disney Princess3, Rikku's Twin, 5x5shadow5, Fairywolf, ShadySkills5, mileymadness, AlvinFan07, Hotcutii3, manda1545, Pezz, languageartslover, Vanessa Riverton, android181, Roses Have Feelings Too, Anti-Gravity111, irockmysox123, Kaylyn Cullen, broken voice, M3L2001, Heartbrake Angel, kino101, cellen8, joeroxx12 and FaithIsMyHero.

I normally don't waffle on quite so much on my authors notes, but I really do appreciate everyone's reviews :D so if ya could just hit that little review button one more time then you'll make me the happiest author on fanfic lol ;P

Thanks again everyone and I'll see you soon with my next story, Nicki xoxo


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